AMMAN — The
Jordanian-Israeli relationship could
reach a dangerous boiling point following Sunday’s announcement by Israeli
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett that there will be no foreign interference
concerning the fate of the “Temple Mount”, i.e., Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, and
that decisions on Jerusalem will be made solely by Israel.
اضافة اعلان
His statements
were seen as a deliberate breach of Jordan’s custodianship role over the Muslim
site, something that no other sitting Israeli prime minister has previously
done.
The statement was made in response to Arab Israeli
MK Mansour Abbas’ declaration on Sunday that
His Majesty King Abdullah is the
only party responsible for all matters relating to Al-Aqsa Mosque. It was the
first official Israeli declaration against the Hashemite custodianship over
Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem.
Israel had recognized Jordan’s special historical
role over Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem in the 1994 peace treaty.
By end of business day Monday there was no official
response by the Jordanian government.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates spokesman Haitham Abu Al-foul did not answer
Jordan News calls.
The Lower House Palestine Committee issued a
statement on Monday condemning Bennett’s statement, saying that such comments
are bound to ignite regional religious wars and upset the historical and
spiritual reality in Al-Aqsa Mosque and Jerusalem.
Mohammad Al-Thahrawi, the committee’s spokesman,
warned against the continuing Israeli assault on Al-Aqsa Mosque and urged
Bennett not to test the patience of two billion Muslims.
The committee reiterated Jordan’s absolute rejection
of the historical and geographical division of
Al-Aqsa. It stated that it will
“stand firm in the face of direct and indirect pressures” to which it is
subjected, stressing that “Jerusalem will remain the eternal capital of Palestine”.
The
Lower House Foreign Affairs Committee also
issued a statement on Monday condemning Bennett’s statement, which, it said,
points to “a barbaric mentality” whose basis is the continuation of the
occupation of Palestinian lands.
Bennett’s statement reflects the true intention of the Israeli right-wing party, which aims to transform Jerusalem into a Jewish city.
The committee said that such statements would
provoke hundreds of millions of
Muslims in different parts of the world who
will consider this “a coup against Al-Aqsa and Jerusalem’s historic and
religious realities”.
The committee also stressed that “Palestinians have
sovereignty over Jerusalem” and that “the guardianship of its holy sites is
Hashemite, being assumed by His Majesty King Abdullah who commits all the
capabilities of the Kingdom to protect it”.
Political analyst Labib Kamhawi told
Jordan News that Bennett’s statement reflects the true intention of the Israeli right-wing
party, which aims to transform Jerusalem into a Jewish city.
“They want Jerusalem to be only for the Jews. But
the issue is bigger than the Hashemite custody,” Kamhawi said.
According to Kamhawi, a set of factors encouraged
Israel to reopen discussion about taking over Jerusalem and its endowments,
such as the increasing weakness of the Arab and Islamic worlds and the
significant pressure exercised by the right-wing political parties on the Israeli
government.
“Jordan is fighting alone; there is no one by its
side. Arabs and Muslims do not care about the issue, so there is no deterrent
that could prevent the Israelis from publicly announcing this,” Kamhawi added.
He noted that the Council of Islamic Endowments in
Jerusalem, part of the Jordanian Ministry of Awqaf, have been sidelined. He
added that the Israeli goal is not only to divide Al-Aqsa Mosque but to
demolish it and build a Jewish temple on its site.
“We have to work on preventing the crisis, not wait
for the crisis to happen. This requires strategic thinking that we do not have.
The issue is much bigger than Jordan. Therefore, Jordan has to gather Arab and
Islamic support to have a stronger position, since being alone in this fight will
not produce any results,” Kamhawi stated.
Political analyst and columnist Amer Al-Sabaileh
told
Jordan News that Bennett’s statement is not diplomatic, and only
aims to escalate an already bad situation. According to him, this announcement
is propaganda to appeal to Israel’s right wing, since Bennett’s government is
currently fragile and the prime minister is facing opposition from his mainly
right-wing coalition.
“It does not mean that it (the Israeli threat) will
materialize, as Israelis did not take any concrete steps like firing the
Jordanian Council of Islamic Endowments in Jerusalem,” Sabaileh said.
He added that Jordan is aware of the diplomatic
tension with Israel, and that the two countries have to work to contain any
escalation since it is not in the interest of anyone to have it reach a boiling
point.
“Deep down, Israel knows
now that Jordan is important. Therefore, I do not take this escalation
seriously. It is only propaganda, without any action, and the security
coordination between the two countries has not been impacted,” Sabaileh stated.
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