UPDATES WITH FURTHER QUOTES FROM TURKISH PREMIER BINALI YILDIRIM, OTHER MINOR EDITS
By Duygu Yener
ANKARA (AA) – Restricting access to Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque will not resolve any problems, Turkey’s prime minister said Friday.
“Their implementation is wrong,” Binali Yildirim said. “Taking such radical measures over a terror threat, blocking or restricting Muslims’ access to Al-Aqsa Mosque, will not contribute to solving any problems.”
Israeli police placed metal detectors at the entrances to the mosque compound following an gun attack last week that left three Palestinians and two Israeli police officers dead.
On Friday thousands of Palestinians prayed in the streets around the site, which is the third holiest in Islam. Dozens were later injured in clashes with police.
Speaking to journalists in Ankara, Yildirim said the restrictions would instead damage “tolerance” between civilizations and religions.
“I hope that in the near future everything will return to normal,” he added.
Urging calm, Yildirim stressed the Islamic world’s sensitivity on this issue.
Israel occupied East Jerusalem during the 1967 Six-Day War. It later annexed the city in 1980, claiming all of Jerusalem as the Jewish state’s capital — a move not recognized by the international community.
