WASHINGTON (REUTERS) – US Secretary of State Antony Blinken mentioned latest violence in Israel and the West Bank together with his Jordanian counterpart and pressured the importance of sustaining the status quo at Jerusalem’s holy sites, the State Department stated in a press release on Tuesday (April 19).
“Secretary Blinken emphasised the importance of upholding the historic status quo at the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount, and appreciation for the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan’s special role as custodian of Muslim holy places in Jerusalem,” spokesman Ned Price stated in a press release.
Blinken and Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi on Monday additionally mentioned the importance of Israelis and Palestinians working to finish the violence and chorus from escalatory actions, he stated.
Jordan’s King Abdullah stated on Monday that Israel’s “unilateral” strikes towards Muslim worshippers at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa mosque critically undermined the prospects for peace within the area, state media stated.
The monarch, who was talking with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, blamed Israel for “provocative acts” within the mosque compound that violated “the legal and historic status quo” of the Muslim holy shrines.
Last Friday, at least 152 Palestinians had been wounded in clashes with Israeli riot police contained in the mosque compound, the most recent outbreak in an upsurge of violence that has raised fears of a slide again to wider battle.
King Abdullah’s Hashemite monarchy has been custodian of the sites since 1924, paying for his or her repairs and deriving half of its legitimacy from the position.
A quantity of US officers engaged in telephone calls with Israelis, Palestinians and Arab representatives within the area over the weekend to see to it that tensions in Jerusalem don’t escalate, Price advised reporters on Monday.
Tensions this yr have been heightened partly by the Muslim holy month of Ramadan coinciding with the Jewish celebration of Passover.
