MADRID, 6 Ene. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Security Council of the United Nations has asked this Thursday to maintain the ‘status quo’ in the Esplanade of the Mosques, after an extraordinary meeting after the visit of the Minister of National Security of Israel, Itamar Ben Gvir, leader of the far-right party Otzma Yehudit , to the place.
The UN Assistant Secretary General for the Middle East, Khaled Khiari, has warned members that the situation in the area “is very fragile”, as has already been “seen on numerous occasions in the past”.
“Any incident or tension that occurs there can spill over and cause violence throughout the occupied Palestinian territory, in Israel and elsewhere in the region,” he warned.
In this sense, Khiari has recognized that, “although the visit was not accompanied or followed by violence, it is considered particularly inflammatory given Ben Gvir’s previous defense of future changes in the ‘status quo’.”
“With that reality in mind, I reiterate the call of the Secretary General, (António Guterres) for all parties to refrain from taking measures that could increase tensions in and around holy sites, and for all to maintain the ‘status quo. ‘, in accordance with Jordan’s special role,” he explained, referring to the role of the Jordanian kingdom as custodian of the site.
Likewise, he stressed that the United Nations is in close contact with the parties to reduce the escalation, since “all efforts to reduce tensions should be encouraged, while provocations, incendiary steps, unilateral actions and threats of violence must be categorically rejected”, has settled.
For his part, the Palestinian representative, Riyahd Mansur, has insisted that the Israeli minister did not limit his presence in the Esplanade of the Mosques to “a visit”, but that he has a political objective.
Mansur has asserted that “Israel has no right over the sovereignty of the occupied Palestinian territory,” while insisting that peace in the region must be determined in Jerusalem.
As for the Israeli representative, Gilad Erdan, he expressed that he was “very happy” because the extraordinary meeting of the UN Security Council dealt with the “calm, orderly and uneventful visit” by Ben Gvir.
“I thought that if this important body meets to discuss such a trivial matter, then clearly we achieve world peace overnight. After all, why else would this Council spend its time on such a trivial event?” , he ironized.
Erdan has remarked that the visit falls within the ‘status quo’ and that Jews have the right to attend the Esplanade of the Mosques. He, too, has accused the Palestinians of turning the place into a battlefield.
The ‘status quo’ in the Esplanade of the Mosques prevents Jews from praying in the Esplanade of the Mosques and only authorizes them to visit the place at predetermined times and to travel through a fixed route, accompanied by policemen who must ensure that the faithful do not pray or introduce Israeli flags or religious objects.
Israel took control of the Temple Mount and the rest of the Old City of Jerusalem during the Six Day War (1967). However, it allowed Jordan to continue to maintain religious authority at the site and, under the peace agreement, recognized Jordan’s “special role” over “Muslim holy places in Jerusalem.”
Israel considers Jerusalem its “indivisible” capital, although the status of the city is pending a peace agreement with the Palestinian authorities, who claim East Jerusalem as the capital of a state on the 1967 borders as part of a peace settlement. two states backed by the international community, which also calls for no changes to the ‘status quo’.
