Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Kuwait slam Israeli escalation in Jerusalem

By Ahmed Asmar

ANKARA (AA) - Several Arab countries and leading Islamic bodies on Saturday denounced Israeli eviction plans for Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem and an assault on worshippers performing prayers in Jerusalem's flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry condemned Israel’s unilateral measures because it undermines chances to resume peace talks.

"We reject Israel's plans and measures to evict Palestinian homes in Jerusalem and to impose Israel's sovereignty on them," it said.

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry denounced breaking into Al-Aqsa Mosque by Israeli forces and the attack on worshippers.

"The displacement of Palestinian families in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood is a violation of resolutions of international legitimacy and the international humanitarian law," it said in a statement.

Kuwait's Foreign Ministry also slammed the incident at the mosque and considered it a blatant challenge to the feelings of Muslims and rules of human rights.

It held Israeli authorities responsible for a dangerous escalation and consequences that may result.

Meanwhile, Egypt’s Al-Azhar University, the highest seat of Sunni Muslim learning, denounced the assault on worshippers and deemed it a "brutal Zionist terrorism in the light of shameful international silence" toward what is going on in Jerusalem.

For its part, the Islamic Union for Muslim Scholars (IUMS) hailed the steadfastness of Palestinian Jerusalemites in the face of Israeli aggression and plans to displace them from their homes.

IUMS Secretary-General Ali Qaradaghi encouraged the Muslim world to support the Palestinian cause materially and morally, considering such support a religious duty and necessity.

Late Friday, the number of Palestinian injured rose to 205 in Israeli attacks at Al-Aqsa Mosque, Damascus Gate of the Old City and the Sheikh Jarrah district in East Jerusalem.

Police attacked Muslim worshippers inside Al-Aqsa Mosque while they were performing tarawih -- special night prayers during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Al-Aqsa Mosque is the world's third-holiest site for Muslims. Jews call the area the "Temple Mount," claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.

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.