Israel's Ben-Gvir Says To Visit Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Complex Again

Israel's Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, on Wednesday vowed to visit the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in East Jerusalem again amid tension in the Palestinian territories.

The far-right minister, however, did not provide a date for his planned visit.

Ben-Gvir had toured the flashpoint site on Jan. 3, days after the new Israeli government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was sworn in.

His visit has triggered a storm of condemnations from countries around the world, including Jordan, Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

"I went up to make it clear to Hamas that they are not the owners of the house. My ascent was to clarify a message: You will not threaten a minister in the State of Israel," Ben-Gvir told the Army Radio.

"Don't worry, I will go up again," he added.

Ben-Gvir holds far-right views on the Palestinians and has called for their displacement. He has repeatedly joined Israeli settlers in storming the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in East Jerusalem.

The far-right politician had also caused a wave of escalation in occupied East Jerusalem after setting up an office in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.

In November, Israeli President Isaac Herzog warned in a leaked audio that "the whole world is worried" about Ben-Gvir's far-right views.

Al-Aqsa Mosque is the world's third-holiest site for Muslims. Jews call the area the Temple Mount, saying it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.

Under Jerusalem's internationally recognized status quo, Jews are allowed to visit the compound but not pray, but in recent years, Israeli settlers have been spotted performing prayer rituals inside the Al-Aqsa compound.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. It annexed the entire city in 1980, in a move never recognized by the international community.

*Ikram Imane Kouachi contributed to this report. -