White House Rejects Any Action Jeopardizing Status Quo of Jerusalem Holy Sites

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre (EPA)
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre (EPA)
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White House Rejects Any Action Jeopardizing Status Quo of Jerusalem Holy Sites

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre (EPA)
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre (EPA)

The White House on Tuesday affirmed that any unilateral action that jeopardizes the status quo at the holy sites in Jerusalem is unacceptable.

The US position came after Tuesday’s visit of Israeli extreme-right firebrand Itamar Ben-Gvir to Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa mosque.

“The US stands firmly... for preservation of the status quo with respect to holy sites in Jerusalem,” said White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.

“Any unilateral action that jeopardizes the status quo is unacceptable.”

For his part, US State Department Spokesman Ned Price said Washington is “deeply concerned” by Ben Gvir’s visit to the Temple Mount earlier on Tuesday.

Asked about the visit during a press briefing, Price said the US believes the visit has “the potential to exacerbate tensions and to provoke violence.”

Price added the US has had direct talks with representatives of the (Israeli) prime minister's office regarding the visit.



Israeli Soldiers Kill Palestinian Man in West Bank

A picture taken in the village of Turmus Ayya near Ramallah city shows the nearby Israeli Shilo settlement in the background, in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2024. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)
A picture taken in the village of Turmus Ayya near Ramallah city shows the nearby Israeli Shilo settlement in the background, in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2024. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)
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Israeli Soldiers Kill Palestinian Man in West Bank

A picture taken in the village of Turmus Ayya near Ramallah city shows the nearby Israeli Shilo settlement in the background, in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2024. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)
A picture taken in the village of Turmus Ayya near Ramallah city shows the nearby Israeli Shilo settlement in the background, in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2024. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)

Palestinian authorities said Israeli troops killed a 55-year-old man in the north of the occupied West Bank on Thursday -- an incident the Israeli army said involved a stabbing attack.

The Ramallah-based health ministry said the body in charge of coordination with Israel informed it that soldiers "shot and killed" the man in Rummanah, near Jenin, in the morning.

The Israeli military said separately that troops deployed in the village "neutralised" a man after he stabbed and "moderately injured" a soldier, AFP reported.

The army generally uses the term "neutralised" after killing someone.

Violence in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967, has soared since the Hamas attack of October 2023.

A 12-year-old Palestinian boy died Thursday of wounds suffered during an army raid near the West Bank town of Nablus last week, the health ministry said.

Since October 7, 2023, Israeli troops or settlers have killed at least 951 Palestinians, including many militants, the ministry said.

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Over the same period, at least 35 Israelis have been killed in Palestinian attacks or during Israeli military operations, according to Israeli figures.