AL slams Israeli raids on Al-Aqsa mosque

CAIRO: The Arab League on Thursday strongly condemned an Israeli police raid on Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, saying it put regional stability at risk.In a statement issued after an emergency meeting on the incident, the League condemned what it called “crimes committed by the Israeli occupation forces against defenceless Muslim worshippers” in the mosque.

The pre-dawn raid risked “igniting a spiral of violence that threatens security and stability in the region and the world”, it added. Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit had earlier condemned the raid in a separate statement.

“The extremist approaches that control the policy of the Israeli government will lead to widespread confrontations with the Palestinians if they are not put to an end,” he said. “We call on the international community, with an emphasis on the countries that are members of the UN Security Council, to act quickly to make Israel stop this dangerous escalation that could ignite the entire region,” Gheit said. He also charged “extremists” in the Israeli government with trying to stoke tensions with the Palestinians. “Don’t transfer the internal crisis in Israel to the Palestinian people.”

Palestinian Authority Civil Affairs Minister Hussein al-Sheikh condemned the Israeli police action inside Al-Aqsa, saying that “the level of brutality requires urgent Palestinian, Arab and international action.”