The Israeli government has decided to keep rules for Muslims entering the Al-Aqsa Mosque during Ramadan, fending off pressure from far-right extremists in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition.
The number of people allowed into the mosque and the Dome of the Rock complex will be the same as last year, the Prime Minister's Office said in a statement. It did not clarify whether Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, who need permission to enter Jerusalem, would face any new restrictions.
The decision defuses a politically explosive issue that has roiled the Arab world – Muslims consider the mosque the third holiest site in Islam, while Jews, who call the site the Temple Mount, consider it their third holiest site. Ramadan begins on March 10th.
Restrictions on entry to mosques in 2021 (also during Ramadan) triggered an 11-day war with Hamas.
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