Threats against sanctity of Al-Aqsa mosque must cease - Erdogan

ANKARA - Israeli police raids on Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem are "unacceptable," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Wednesday, calling on Israel to abandon steps that are fueling tensions.

"The intrusions and threats against the sanctity and historical significance of Al-Aqsa Mosque as well as Palestinians' freedom of religion and life must cease," Anadolu Agency quoted Erdogan as saying in a televised interview.

His remarks came after tensions escalated when Israeli police detained around 350 worshippers from inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex.

A group of Palestinians barricaded themselves inside the Al-Qibli Prayer Hall in the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex after Jewish settlers called for a raid on the mosque.

They attempted to prevent police from entering by closing its doors.

Surrounding the Al-Qibli Prayer Hall, Israeli police went up to the roof of the mosque, smashed windows, and initially used sound bombs against worshippers inside. Some in the mosque tried to resist police by throwing fireworks.

Calling on Israel to definitively abandon steps that will escalate and increase tensions, Erdogan said: "No security concerns can justify such an inhuman intervention." "We will continue to stand by our Palestinian brothers and sisters under all circumstances and to protect our sacred values. Israel should know this as well," he said.

Meanwhile, Anadolu reported that Russia’s Foreign Ministry expressed grave concern Wednesday over the situation at Al-Aqsa Mosque, saying events in Jerusalem "antagonise all the world's religions."

"Moscow is expressing serious concern about another round of escalation between the Palestinians and Israelis, which threatens to develop into a full-scale armed confrontation, as has happened many times in the past," said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on the ministry’s Telegram channel.

The Foreign Ministry said in a statement on its website that the situation in Jerusalem shows that only political agreements can ensure the sustainable settlement of longstanding conflicts.

"We proceed from the fact that there is no alternative to restarting the peace process between the Palestinians and Israelis under the legal framework approved by the United Nations (UN), based on the principle of two states," it said.

Moscow also called on UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to pay close attention to the Israeli-Palestinian settlement, urging him to engage the potential of its Middle Eastern missions for a thorough analysis of the events aimed at finding the initial reasons for the latest spiral of violence and to draft recommendations for the restoration of stability - BERNAMA