09 January 2023•Update: 09 January 2023
ISTANBUL
The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) will hold an extraordinary meeting on Tuesday to discuss Israeli violations at the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in occupied East Jerusalem.
In a statement, the Jeddah-based organization said the meeting comes “after the continuous Israeli escalation in the occupied city of Al-Quds [Jerusalem] and the continuous violations against the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque.”
The pan-Muslim grouping said the meeting will discuss the situation after a visit by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir to "Al-Aqsa Mosque courtyards under the protection of the Israeli occupation forces."
Ben-Gvir’s visit, the statement said, came amid Israeli attempts "to change the legal and historical status of Al-Aqsa Mosque."
The far-right Israeli minister visited the flashpoint site last week under Israeli police protection, triggering a storm of condemnations from countries across the world, including Jordan, Turkiye, the US Saudi Arabia, and Qatar.
Palestinians accuse Israel of systematically working to Judaize East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, and to obliterate its Arab and Islamic identity.
For Muslims, Al-Aqsa represents the world's third-holiest site. Jews, for their part, call the area the Temple Mount, saying it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.
Israel occupied East Jerusalem during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. It annexed the entire city in 1980, in a move never recognized by the international community.
*Writing by Ahmed Asmar in Ankara
