Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir declared on Wednesday during the Jerusalem Day Flag March that "Jews prayed freely on the Temple Mount." Activists were seen waving flags and singing the national anthem. Jewish prayer on the Temple Mount constitutes a violation of the status quo.
Following Ben-Gvir's declaration, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu contradicted his words and said in a statement issued by his office that "The status quo on the Temple Mount has not changed and will not change."
"I came here for one thing, to send a message to Hamas and to every house in Gaza and also in the north. Jerusalem is ours. The Damascus Gate, Temple Mount is ours," Ben-Gvir near Damascus Gate.
"Today, according to my policy, Jews entered the Old City freely. And also the Temple Mount where they prayed freely. We say in the simplest way, it's ours. This is the message to Hamas. I pray for the wounded, pray for the release of the hostages. But I say, Hamas and Hezbollah must be defeated in war, only in war! And this is ours, our Temple Mount, our Damascus Gate. Let the whole world know it."
Ben-Gvir did not condemn the Jewish activists' violence against journalists who came to cover the event. According to the police, 18 people were arrested throughout the day following various violent incidents, including five 16-year-old boys who attacked journalists. Thousands of people participated in the march, and more than 3,000 police officers, Border Police officers and volunteers secured the march route spanning from central Jerusalem, through the Damascus Gate, to the Western Wall.
Ben-Gvir pressed the police to allow thousands of marchers to pass through the Damascus Gate, the main entrance to the Muslim Quarter of the Old City. Despite the sensitive nature of the location, Hamas fired rockets at that area in 2021 during the Flag March, which led to the launch of Operation Guardian of the Walls. The police claimed that this year there was no intelligence indicating an intention to disrupt the march and that "incitement attempts were felt less this time."
Before the march, and as part of Jerusalem Day's events, more than 1,500 Jews visited the Temple Mount. Many of them waved Israeli flags at the site.
Tom Nisani, CEO of Beyadenu (In Our Hands) – Returning to the Temple Mount, said: "The enemy's scheme failed. Instead of being terrorized, the Jewish people filled the Temple Mount on Jerusalem Day to prove that we cannot be defeated. Indeed, from the morning, dozens of Jews were detained on the mount, but discrimination will not prevent us from continuing to establish our sovereignty in the holiest place for the Jewish people. This is the resounding response to all the mosque images in Hamas's houses."
Flag March violence
(Video: Liran Tamari)
The Kingdom of Jordan, which is the authority responsible for the Temple Mount, condemned what it called the "storming" of the sire holy to both Jews and Muslims under the auspices of the Israel Police. The Jordanian Foreign Ministry said that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi spoke with UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed and that the two condemned the continuation of "Israeli attacks" on the Al-Aqsa Mosque.