Jordan says repair works at Al-Aqsa complex resumed

By Laith al-Jounaidi

AMMAN, Jordan (AA) – Jordan has announced the resumption of repair works at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque complex, days after the works halted by Israeli forces.

The announcement came during a meeting on Wednesday between Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman al-Safadi with members of the Palestine Committee in parliament.

“The repair works were resumed after Jordanian diplomatic efforts,” the minister said, reiterating his country’s firm support to the Palestinian cause.

On Sunday, Israeli forces prevented workers from carrying out restoration works at the Dome of the Rock Mosque at the Al-Aqsa complex.

Tel Aviv did not cite any reason for halting the works.

The Jordan-run Islamic Waqf Department is responsible for overseeing Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem under the 1994 peace agreement between Jordan and Israel.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. It annexed the entire city in 1980 in a move never recognized by the international community.

*Ahmed Asmar contributed to this report from Ankara