AnalysisAsiaFeaturesGlobal IssuesICGIsrael - Palestine IssueMiddle EastPoliticsSecuritySocietyWorld
What’s at Stake at Jerusalem’s Holy Esplanade?
Just days after a new Israeli government was sworn in, one of its most extreme members paid a provocative thirteen-minute visit to Jerusalem’s Temple Mount/al-Aqsa Mosque complex.
- In this Q&A, Crisis Group expert Mairav Zonszein looks at what is behind this move and what it implies.
What happened in Jerusalem on 3 January to cause such a stir?
Israel’s new government had barely taken its seat when one of its most far-right members, Itamar Ben Gvir, in one of his first official acts as national security minister, entered the Holy Esplanade (Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount) under heavy security in what was a…