Safeguarding Temple Mount is Jordan's responsibility

(JNS.org) Israel responded to Jordanian King Abdullah’s criticism of the Jewish state over the Temple Mount, telling the Jordanian leader it is Jordan itself that is violating the status quo at the holy site by allowing armed rioters there.

According to a report by Israel’s Channel 2 on Monday, the Israeli government told King Abdullah to not “run away from your responsibility” in safeguarding the Temple Mount.

“The Waqf (a Jordanian-run Islamic trust that oversees the Temple Mount) broke the status quo by letting rioters armed with stones sleep in the al-Aqsa Mosque,” the Israeli government said.  

King Abdullah has been highly critical of Israel’s actions on the Temple Mount. On Sunday, Abdullah told a visiting delegation of Arab members of the Israeli Knesset that the site was a place for “Muslim prayer only.” Last week, Abdullah warned Israel against any further “provocation” at the holy site that could ruin relations between the two countries.