Post by sublime92 on Jul 16, 2017 23:27:11 GMT
The decision to reopen the Temple Mount for prayer services followed moves to place metal detectors next to each gate to monitor and prevent the smuggling of firearms into the compound and install surveillance cameras to improve security. It was not disclosed, however, when and where the cameras will be placed.
Shortly thereafter, members of the Jerusalem Islamic Wakf, the Muslim religious body that oversees the compound, protested the new security measures and called on Muslim worshipers to avoid entering the compound. The Muslim leaders said Waqf personnel would not return to the mosques for the time being.
“This is a severe violation of the status quo,” said Sheikh Omar al-Kiswani, the director of al-Aksa Mosque, located on the Temple Mount.
In a statement to the press, al-Kiswani said prayers would take place outside the gates until the metal detectors were removed, demanding a return to the way things were in 1967 when there was no police presence at the site.
He then asked: “How could they check hundreds of thousands of people who come here every Ramadan?” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is on a diplomatic trip to Paris, said he believes the status quo should remain unchanged but that the metal detectors are there to stay and security cameras should be installed to prevent similar attacks in the future.
Outside the Gate of the Tribes, some 300 people gathered to protest the situation, and performed the noon prayer at the spot.
www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Temple-Mount-reopens-for-prayer-following-deadly-Friday-attack-499842
