Türkiye can’t remain silent over threats to status quo of Al Aqsa: Erdogan

By: TRT WORLD

Türkiye’s president has stressed that it is impossible for his country to remain silent in the face of provocations and threats to the status quo and spirituality of Jerusalem’s Al Aqsa Mosque.

In a phone call on Saturday, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Israeli counterpart Isaac Herzog discussed the latest raids by Israeli security forces on the Al Aqsa Mosque, as well as the harsh interventions against those at the holy sites, according to Turkish Communications Directorate.

Saying that the latest incidents wound the conscience of not only Muslims but all of humanity, Erdogan stressed that Türkiye can in no way remain silent in the face of provocations and threats to the status quo and spirituality of Al Aqsa, located in occupied East Jerusalem.

The tensions spreading to Gaza and Lebanon should not be allowed to escalate, he urged.

Ankara ready to play its role

Stressing the need to prevent such incidents, which are repeated every Ramadan, from becoming the fate of the region, Erdogan also voiced Türkiye’s readiness to do its part to get to the root of the problem and take steps towards establishing a just and lasting peace.

Tension escalated across Palestinian territories after Israeli forces stormed the Al Aqsa Mosque complex in occupied East Jerusalem and forcibly removed worshippers on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The Israeli raids on the mosque triggered rocket fire from Gaza and Lebanon, with Israeli retaliating with air strikes.

Palestinians accuse Israel of systematically working to Judaize occupied East Jerusalem, where Al Aqsa is located, and 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 ancient Jewish temples.

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.

Source: TRTWorld and agencies