'Unacceptable': Pakistan, 7 other countries condemn Israeli minister Ben Gvir's Al Aqsa incursion

Pakistan, alongside seven other nations, has issued a strong condemnation of Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir's recent incursion into the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem. The joint statement, released on Friday, described the actions as "provocative and unacceptable."

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These provocative and unacceptable actions constitute a flagrant violation of international law, the relevant United Nations resolutions, and the historical and legal status quo at the holy sites in occupied East Jerusalem.

The foreign ministers of Pakistan, Egypt, Turkiye, Indonesia, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates collectively voiced their strong disapproval. Their statement specifically condemned "in the strongest terms the Israeli escalation at Al Aqsa Mosque, particularly the continued mass settlers’ incursions led by extremist Israeli ministers, under the protection of the Israeli forces, the raising of the Israeli flag within its courtyards, the erection by Israeli police of two tents, and all other inflammatory acts."

The ministers emphasized that these actions constitute a "flagrant violation of international law, the relevant United Nations resolutions, and the historical and legal status quo at the holy sites in occupied East Jerusalem." They further deplored and condemned "the illegal and extremist acts of incitement, incursions’ mobilisation calls and violence by Israeli extremist ministers and groups," warning that such behavior "fuel hatred and extremism, and obstruct efforts to advance a just and lasting peace on the basis of the two-State solution."

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The ministers also “deplore and condemn in the strongest terms the illegal and extremist acts of incitement, incursions’ mobilisation calls and violence by Israeli extremist ministers and groups”, warning that such actions “fuel hatred and extremism, and obstruct efforts to advance a just and lasting peace on the basis of the two-State solution”.

The statement also highlighted restrictions on access to the Old City of Jerusalem and its places of worship, labeling them as "discriminatory and arbitrary access restrictions" that violate international law, including international humanitarian law. The ministers reiterated that Israel holds "no sovereignty over occupied Jerusalem or its Islamic and Christian holy sites" and condemned ongoing Israeli measures aimed at altering the "historical, legal, and demographic character of occupied East Jerusalem."

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Israel has no sovereignty over occupied Jerusalem or its Islamic and Christian holy sites.

They reaffirmed their "categorical rejection of any attempts to alter the historical and legal status quo in Jerusalem and its Islamic and Christian holy sites," while acknowledging the "special role of the historical Hashemite custodianship in this regard." The ministers stressed that the entire Al-Aqsa Mosque area is a place of worship exclusively for Muslims, managed by the Jerusalem Endowments and Al-Aqsa Mosque Affairs Department.

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The ministers reiterate that the entire area of Al Aqsa Mosque, which amounts to 144 dunams, is a place of worship exclusively for Muslims, and that the Jerusalem Endowments and Al Aqsa Mosque Affairs Department, affiliated with the Jordanian Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs, is the legal entity with ex