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UN Security Council to Discuss Israeli Minister's Al-Aqsa Visit

Visitors walk next to Al-Aqsa mosque on the compound known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as the Temple Mount, in Jerusalem's Old City January 3, 2023. (Reuters)
Visitors walk next to Al-Aqsa mosque on the compound known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as the Temple Mount, in Jerusalem's Old City January 3, 2023. (Reuters)
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UN Security Council to Discuss Israeli Minister's Al-Aqsa Visit

Visitors walk next to Al-Aqsa mosque on the compound known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as the Temple Mount, in Jerusalem's Old City January 3, 2023. (Reuters)
Visitors walk next to Al-Aqsa mosque on the compound known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as the Temple Mount, in Jerusalem's Old City January 3, 2023. (Reuters)

The UN Security Council will meet Thursday to discuss the controversial visit to Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque compound by an Israeli minister that has enraged Palestinians.

The 15-member Council will convene at 3:00 pm (2000 GMT) at the United Nations headquarters in New York following a request by the United Arab Emirates and China, AFP said.

"It is the international community that decides the fate of defending and protecting the historic status quo in Jerusalem in the defense of the Islamic and Christian sites in Jerusalem," Palestinian ambassador to the UN Riyad Mansour said.

"We will not be satisfied with beautiful statements which will be uttered tomorrow in the Security Council. We want them to be implemented in a concrete way," he added.

There have been fears Tuesday's visit by Israel's new national security minister, firebrand Itamar Ben-Gvir, could spark a war.

Al-Aqsa mosque lies in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem and is the third-holiest site in Islam.

Under a longstanding status quo, non-Muslims can visit the site at specific times but are not allowed to pray there.

In recent years, a growing number of Jews, most of them Israeli nationalists, have covertly prayed at the compound, a development decried by Palestinians.

Western governments warned such moves threaten the fragile arrangement at Jerusalem's holy sites.

Ben-Gvir's visit sparked a wave of international condemnation, including from the United States, a longstanding ally of Israel.

"This is an action of extremism that purports to create a new cycle of violence," Jordan's ambassador to the UN Mahmoud Daifallah Hmoud said.

"The Security Council has to take its responsibility seriously and stop such attempts," he added.

Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN chief Antonio Guterres, reiterated Wednesday that the secretary-general "calls on all to refrain from steps that could escalate tensions in and around Jerusalem."

The UN Security Council has adopted several resolutions on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict over the years and supports the two-state solution to peace in the Middle East.

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Arab World

Israel Seeks to Maintain Areas of Control and Influence in Syrian Territory

Military mobility of Israeli army continues on the Syrian-Israeli border in the Majdal Shams region of Golan Heights in Syria on December 19, 2024 (Anadolu Agency)
Military mobility of Israeli army continues on the Syrian-Israeli border in the Majdal Shams region of Golan Heights in Syria on December 19, 2024 (Anadolu Agency)
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Israel Seeks to Maintain Areas of Control and Influence in Syrian Territory

Military mobility of Israeli army continues on the Syrian-Israeli border in the Majdal Shams region of Golan Heights in Syria on December 19, 2024 (Anadolu Agency)
Military mobility of Israeli army continues on the Syrian-Israeli border in the Majdal Shams region of Golan Heights in Syria on December 19, 2024 (Anadolu Agency)

Israel plans to maintain areas of “control” (occupation) and “influence” (intelligence) in Syrian territory, according to a new operational concept that security officials developed for the new reality in Syria that emerged following the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
Senior officials in Israel said that the country would need to maintain a 15 km operational perimeter within Syrian territory, where the Israeli army would maintain a presence to ensure that allies of the new regime couldn’t launch missiles toward the Golan Heights, according to Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper.
They also noted the necessity of a “sphere of influence” extending 60 km into Syria, under Israeli intelligence control, to monitor and prevent potential threats from developing.
The new operational concept came a few days after Israeli officials confirmed that their forces will not withdraw from the border buffer zone and the Syrian side of Mount Hermon.
Last week, the Kan public broadcaster said in an unsourced report that the new Syrian leadership has asked the US to pressure Israel to withdraw from the buffer zone.
Israeli officials told Kan that they have received no official request on the matter, adding that the Israeli army’s presence at and across the border is necessary to protect its security.
Last month, just hours after factions of the Syrian opposition swept president Bashar al-Assad from power, Israel captured the buffer zone, which was created following the Yom Kippur War of 1967. They also seized the Syrian side of Mount Hermon.
During a visit to Mount Hermon last month, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that his troops would remain stationed inside Syria “until another arrangement can be found that guarantees Israel’s security.”
Also, Israel has carried out hundreds of attacks across Syria, saying the strikes were aimed at keeping military weapons away from extremists.
According to Yedioth Ahronoth, an Israeli official said that while Ahmed al-Sharaa, Syria's de facto leader, had sent messages to Israel claiming that his forces weren’t seeking conflict, Israel remained skeptical. “This might hold true for a year, two years, maybe even 10 or 20”, he said.
“But no one can guarantee that eventually, they won’t turn against us – and these are highly dangerous people. (Ahmed) Al-Sharaa’s current goal is to lift sanctions on Syria to bring in foreign funds. But in the long run, Israel must maintain a control zone and a sphere of influence in Syria,” the official said.
He also expressed hope that Israel would receive full backing against threats from Syria and Lebanon after the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump on January 20.
“In the meantime, we’ll have to remain there, ensuring a 15-km missile-free zone under our control, as well as a 60-km sphere of influence, to prevent threats from developing. We’re building an operational concept for this new reality,” he said.
Israel was also concerned about the potential entrenchment of Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Syria, seemingly ignored by al-Sharaa, according to the newspaper.
“We won’t allow their establishment in Syria just as we prevented Iran’s foothold there,” the official said.
“We estimate that al-Sharaa prefers to keep them there so they can act against Israel, giving him plausible deniability,” he added.
These remarks came while Israeli officials were reportedly astounded by what they described as the West's “blindness” toward the regime of Ahmad al-Sharaa, according to Yedioth Ahronoth.