The Palestinian envoy to the United Nations, an American of Palestinian descent, threatened another Intiffadah if the United Nations did not sanction Israel over Itamar Ben Gvir's lawful ascent to the Temple Mount.
The UN Security Council convened Thursday for the initial discussion on the ascension of National Security Minister Itamar, Ben Gvir, to the Temple Mount. The discussion began with the UN representative’s statement, after which the representatives of the 15 member countries of the Security Council spoke, as well as the Palestinian representative and Israeli ambassador Gilad Erdan.
The appeal to the UN, which was initiated by the Palestinians, the United Arab Emirates, and China, ended without any specific ruling or official decision. The Palestinian representative to the UN, Riyad Mansour, harshly attacked when his turn came to speak. "What red line does Israel have to cross for the Security Council to say - 'enough'? When will you act? Our people are losing patience. Ben Gvir, the Israeli extremist who now holds the rank of minister, was convicted of inciting and supporting a terrorist organization, and is known for his racist views - did not simply come to visit Al-Aqsa. He promotes the same extreme agenda that he has promoted all his life - to end the historical status quo."
'There is absolutely no reason that this emergency session today should be held. None'
— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) January 5, 2023
Gilad Erdan, Israel's Representative to the #UN, speaks ahead of the UN Security Council meeting on Itamar Ben-Gvir's visit to the Temple Mount #i24NEWSDesk | @benitalevin pic.twitter.com/BNY6hMa1G8
"Did the Israeli government condemn his actions? No. It embraced them," Mansour added. "The Israeli argument is that it happened before. No big deal. Gilad Erdan also stormed the Temple Mount as minister. It's as if a criminal on trial says the best defense is that he committed a crime before and got away with it. Al-Aqsa will never fall. We survived Begin, Shamir, and Sharon and in the end will defeat Netanyahu, Ben Gvir, and Erdan. This council should stop you [Israel]. And make no mistake, if the council here does not - the Palestinian people will stop you."
Israel's ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, responded to the Palestinian-American diplomat by saying: "The personal threats of the Palestinian representative speak for themselves - they should not be accepted in this council."
Erdan, who at a press conference before the debate called it "a farce, a ridiculous show about nothing", and even mentioned Seinfeld, "The series about nothing." In his own speech, right after Mansour's speech, Erdan said "for years the Palestinians have been working at the United Nations to erase all traces and connections between the Jewish people and the Temple Mount. Only last week they passed a resolution in the General Assembly that intends to erase the Jewish name of the mountain and refer to it only by its Muslim name."
HAMAS: "Jews - don't you dare go up on the Temple Mount!"
— Yishai Fleisher يشاي ישי פליישר 🕎 (@YishaiFleisher) January 5, 2023
US ADMIN: "Israel - legalizing Homesh is illegal!"
UAE: "Jewish State - you're in trouble with the UN Security Council!"
GOD: "Keep going kids, nice and steady, you're doing just fine."
Ambassador Erdan quoted Abu Mazen's past statements and said: "These plots come from the top of the Palestinian leadership, in the words of Mahmoud Abbas - 'Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher are ours and the Jews have no right to defile them with their filthy feet.' Is this maintaining the status quo? This is blatant incitement and a rewriting of history. Was there an emergency meeting of the Security Council when these things were said?"
The facts of the incident are simple. Israelis are allowed to go up to visit the temple mount during limited hours from Sunday through Thursday. The Jordanian Waqf which is the administrator of the site prohibits prayers by anyone but Muslims on the site, and no one but Muslims are allowed into the Dome of The Rock or Al Aqsa, although there have been exceptions for Christians, but not Jews. Ben Gvir followed protocol and was there for less than 15 minutes.
Sovereign Israel under condemnation by the international community for 'provocation' the PA warns could lead to 'religious war'; a Jewish gov't minister visiting the heritage site of its most revered ancestry in a country of his own, to be condemned by the UN Security Council...! pic.twitter.com/wm8MAksvmO
— Rita Rosenfeld (@rheytah) January 5, 2023
The site is also listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and therefore, should be open to all who want to visit. The Security Council meeting failed to acknowledge this and according to their own guidelines, should not even be discussing the issue without asking the Palestinians why it is not open to all. The Kaaba in Saudi Arabia is not listed as a UNESCO site because it is not open to the public and is exclusive only for Muslims.
