The Slatest

Israel Agrees to Remove Metal Detectors From Jerusalem Mosque After a Week of Violent Clashes

Israeli security forces stand by as Palestinian Muslim worshippers pray outside Lions’ Gate, a main entrance to the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem’s Old City, on July 24, 2017, in protest against new Israeli security measures.

AFP/Getty Images

After a week of protests and violence, Israel announced early Tuesday morning (local time) that it will remove controversial metal detectors at the Aqsa Mosque Compound in East Jerusalem, Islam’s third holiest site, as part of an effort to deescalate a volatile standoff that has claimed seven lives so far. The metal detectors were put in place following the July 14th shooting of two Israeli police officers by three Israeli Arab gunmen, who smuggled weapons into the holy site. The site is sacred for both Muslims and Jews; it’s known as the Temple Mount by Jews and the Noble Sanctuary by Muslims.

In the wake of the shooting, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered metal detectors and security cameras be installed at the entrances to the mosque. The move set off rounds of protests, including Palestinian Muslim worshippers refusing to pass through the metal detectors and praying in the nearby streets. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas suspended contact with Israel on Friday and deadly clashes over the weekend increased international pressure on the Netanyahu government to find a solution before Friday prayers.

The situation appeared to nearly spiral out of control on Sunday evening as a deadly confrontation took place at the Israeli embassy in Amman, Jordan. Jordan administers the Muslim holy sites in Israel and was involved in negotiations to resolve the mosque dispute when two Jordanian men were shot and killed at the Israeli embassy under unclear circumstances. One of the men reportedly tried to stab an Israeli security officer with a screwdriver, according to the Israel’s Foreign Ministry, and the officer, in turn, “defended himself.”

Following the incident, the Israeli embassy staff appeared unable to leave the compound, further heightening tensions before the Israeli security cabinet relented and agreed to remove the metal detectors. The security cabintet “accepted the recommendation of all of the security bodies to incorporate security measures based on advanced technologies (‘smart checks’) and other measures instead of metal detectors in order to ensure the security of visitors and worshippers in the Old City and on the Temple Mount,” it said in a statement.

The presence of enhanced security cameras, however, continued to anger Palestinain leaders. “Sheikh Najeh Bakirat, the director of al-Aqsa Mosque, said overnight on Tuesday that the move does not fulfill the demands of the Muslim worshippers as the security cameras are being kept,” Al Jazeera reports. “Sheikh Raed Saleh, an al-Aqsa official, said that the Palestinians will ‘never accept the current status, unless everything that was added after July 14 was removed.’”