Monitoring Desk
RAMALLAH: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been shocked by the strong reaction of Arab world to the visit of the Al-Aqsa Mosque by his extremist Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, Arab media reported on Thursday.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has led a chorus of condemnation after the January 3 visit, insisting the need to preserve the status quo of Islam’s third holiest place. Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) scheduled for January. 8, has been canceled as the UAE has joined China in calling for the summoning of a UNSC meeting to discuss Israel’s move on Al-Aqsa.
Al-Aqsa Mosque
According to Arab news, the Israeli Prime Minister has issued a statement in which he made attempt to apologize over the matter. Ronni Shaked, a researcher at the Harry S. Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, told Arab News that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has failed to realize the sensitivity of Al-Aqsa among Muslims and Arabs.
He said that the prime minister was shocked at the reaction from the Muslim and Arab world. The US and EU said that any violation of the holy site could lead to massive anger and instability in the region.
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Ronni Shaked said that the issue is not with Ben-Gvir but rather with the one who allowed him to visit Al-Aqsa, which is Prime Minister Netanyahu. He added that Ben-Gvir will work to shorten the tenure of Netanyahu’s government.
He remarked that following two weeks the extremist minister will demand the legalization of forty-nine illegal settlement outposts set up on Palestinian land in the West Bank, so what will Benjamin Netanyahu do then?
Dana Ben-Shimon, a reporter for Israel Today, told Arab News that Benjamin Netanyahu and his cabinet members were surprised by the condemnation of the extremist minister’s visit, saying that the government will hold a meeting to discuss whether or not to permit the minister to enter Al-Aqsa again.
Ben-Shimon said that Netanyahu was prime minister for 10 years but did not visit Al-Aqsa as he realized that it would generate massive anger.
Meanwhile, Israeli troops killed a 16 years old Palestinian on Thursday during a raid on Nablus. At least four Palestinians including three children were killed by Israel in the first week of January.
