Palestinian Muslim worshippers pray outside Lions\' Gate, the main entrance to the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem\'s Old City, on July 23, in protest against new Israeli security measures implemented at the holy site following an attack that killed two Israeli policemen the previous week. Stabbings and clashes that left six people dead raised fears of further Israeli-Palestinian violence as tensions mount over new security measures at the highly sensitive Jerusalem holy site.
KAIRO, KOMPAS – Al Aqsa crisis resolution efforts have become increasingly complicated following the fatal shooting of two Jordanians at the Israel Embassy in Jordan. Indonesia on Monday (24/7) stressed the importance of peaceful de-escalation to ease tension in Jerusalem.
The escalation of tension at Al-Aqsa Mosque complex over the past week has spread to Jordan. Two Jordanian citizens died in the shooting involving an Israeli security guard at the Israeli Embassy in Amman, Jordan, on Sunday night.
The incident sparked a crisis in diplomatic relations between Israel and Jordan. Jordanian authorities have barred all members of the security unit at the Israeli Embassy from leaving the embassy compound until the deaths of the two Jordanians are investigated.
However, Israel has rejected Amman’s request, citing diplomatic immunity as stated in the Vienna Convention. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to send the security guards at the embassy back to Israel.
Kompas reporter Musthafa Abd Rahman, who has been monitoring the Al-Aqsa crisis from Cairo, Egypt, reported that around 1,000 Jordanians from Kabilah al-Dawayima staged a demonstration in the center of Amman to demand the Jordanian government arrest and punish the perpetrator of the shooting.
Jordan is the guardian of the Al-Aqsa Mosque. The country has taken in a lot of Palestinian citizens. Every change in the status of the holy ground in the area seized by Israel in the 1967 war is a sensitive issue for Amman.
In Jakarta, Indonesia Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi has contacted Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi to stress the importance of de-escalation. She said that Indonesia would continue to make the most of diplomacy with various parties to call for the de-escalation of tension in Jerusalem and persuade Israel to re-open access to Al-Aqsa Mosque for Palestinian Muslims.
“There has to be a strong push from the world so that the situation does not worsen,” said Minister Retno when contacted by Kompas.
Tension in the Al-Aqsa crisis began to rise on July 14 when two Israeli police officers were shot dead by three Palestinians at the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex. The three Palestinian men were later shot dead by the Israeli police. Since then, Israel has installed metal detectors at the entrance of Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Shooting
Information about the death of the two Jordanians at the Israeli Embassy in Amman is unclear. An official statement by the Jordanian government said that a security guard at the Israeli Embassy in Amman had shot a young Jordanian from Kabilah al-Dawwayima, Mohammaed Jawawdeh, 17, after the two were reportedly involved in a verbal altercation.
The security guard also shot another Jordanian, Bashar al Hamaranah, who was accompanying the young Jordanian. Hamaranah was a doctor by profession and was the owner of the building in which the Israeli Embassy is located.
However, the Asharq al-Awsat newspaper reported that the two Jordanians entered the Israeli Embassy compound to install furniture. The two were shot dead by an embassy security guard who became suspicious of their behavior.
As tension started to spread to Jordan, the situation around Al-Aqsa Mosque is still that of chaos. Israeli occupation forces on Monday morning fired tear gas and rubber bullets in the direction of hundreds of Palestinians staying in Africa District, near Al-Aqsa Mosque. Clashes between the two sides were inevitable.
Hundreds of Palestinians from East Jerusalem and the West Bank have since July 14 demonstrated by occupying the alleys around Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah on Sunday stressed that he had not given permission for metal detector doors to be installed at the entrance to the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex. In Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has issued a warning to Israel.
“The issue of Al-Aqsa Mosque is a red line,” reads the OIC statement. “Attacking Al-Aqsa Mosque by any means and for any reason will have serious consequences and will lead to regional instability.”
The OIC will hold a meeting in Istanbul, Turkey, next week, to discuss the Al-Aqsa crisis.
