Why is an Israeli minister’s prayer considered a “provocation”?

► What happened on Tuesday, August 13?

Itamar Ben Gvir, Israel’s Minister of National Security, prayed Tuesday, August 13, with some 3,000 worshipers on the Esplanade of the Mosques in East Jerusalem on the occasion of a Jewish holiday. This far-right minister, who had already prayed there in 2023, is accused of wanting to change the status quo in place since 1967 at this holy site of the three monotheistic religions.

This is a “new unacceptable provocation “, according to a statement from the spokesperson for the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The UN denounces a “unnecessary provocation”The head of American diplomacy castigates, for his part, “flagrant contempt” of the Israeli Minister of National Security who went to pray on the esplanade.

► What is the Esplanade of the Mosques?

The Esplanade of the Mosques is a fourteen-hectare square overlooking the Old City of Jerusalem. It is located in the Palestinian sector, controlled by Israel since 1967 and then annexed. The esplanade is built on the site of the Temple of Jerusalem destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD, and whose only vestige, the Wailing Wall – or Western Wall –, is located below. It is called by the Jews Har HaBayit (Temple Mount).

It is the holiest site in Judaism since it is where the “First Temple” of King Solomon according to the Old Testament, to house the Ark of the Covenant containing the tablets of the law. After the destruction of the Temple during the capture of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 586 BC, a second temple was built on the same site from 520 BC, then enlarged by Herod the Great in 19 BC.

Called Al-Haram al-Sharif (Noble Sanctuary) by Muslims, the Esplanade site also houses the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa (Far) Mosque, as it is the farthest shrine to which the Prophet Muhammad traveled, according to Muslim tradition. The site is the third holiest site in Islam after the Grand Mosque in Mecca and the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina, Saudi Arabia.

It is also an important place for Christians since the Gospels tell that Jesus went there as a child and purified the Temple by driving out the merchants.

► What is the status quo that the minister is accused of wanting to change?

The status quo dates from 1967. After the Six Day War, won by Israel, the Esplanade of the Mosques was conquered by the Israeli army along with the eastern part of Jerusalem which had, until then, been cut in two.

The government of the time established the status quo, which is still in force today: Israel is responsible for ensuring the ” security “ of the place and the Jordanian religious foundation waqf administers it. It is she who authorizes or not non-Muslims to go there. It is also she who organizes the hours at which non-Muslims have the right to go there without praying. Muslims can go there to pray at any time of the day or night.

This status quo is recognized by most Jews since they do not go there. Indeed, the rabbinate prohibits access for fear that the Holy of Holies will be trampled. However, visits by Jewish ultranationalists, as simple visitors under police protection, to finally pray there surreptitiously have multiplied, leaving Muslim worshipers to fear a change in this status quo. In 2021, before being overturned on appeal, a court judgment had tolerated silent prayers on the esplanade of the Mosques.

Tensions around the Esplanade of the Mosques are regular. In 2000, the day after a leader of the Israeli right-wing opposition visited the site, bloody clashes broke out between Palestinians and Israeli police, marking the beginning of the second Intifada.