US calls Ben-Gvir's Al-Aqsa storming 'provocative'

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
22 May 2023 08:46
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The US says Al-Aqsa Mosque should not be used for political purposes and calls on all parties to respect its sanctity.

Israeli occupation Police Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir storms Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, on May 21, 2023 (Reuters)

"Israel's" strongest ally, the United States, condemned the storming of Israeli occupation Police Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir into the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied Al-Quds, the US State Department said on Sunday.

On Sunday, Ben-Gvir stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque for the second time since January 2023.

Calling the outright desecration and storming a "visit", US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller said Washington was concerned by Ben-Gvir's "provocative visit" to the Mosque and "the accompanying inflammatory rhetoric."

"This holy space should not be used for political purposes, and we call on all parties to respect its sanctity," Miller indicated.

The Spokesperson reaffirmed what he called the "longstanding U.S. position in support of the historic status quo" at Al-Quds holy sites and underlined "Jordan’s special role as custodian of Muslim holy sites" in the city.

In a related context, the US State Department also said it was "troubled" by the Israeli occupation government’s decision to revoke a decision banning illegal Israeli settlers from entering the "Homesh" illegal settlement outpost in the northern occupied West Bank.

Miller pointed out that "this order is inconsistent with both former [Israeli] Prime Minister Sharon’s written commitment to the Bush Administration in 2004 and the current Israeli government’s commitments to the Biden Administration."

According to the spokesperson, "Advancing Israeli settlements in the West Bank is an obstacle to the achievement of a two-state solution."

It is noteworthy that under international law, all Israeli settlements are illegal, and the United Nations Security Council has condemned Israeli settlement activities in the occupied territories in several resolutions.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in late February that all Israeli-built settlements are "illegal" and they "must stop".

Earlier on Sunday, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates followed Egypt and Jordan in their strong condemnation of Ben-Gvir's provocative storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque.