Predictably, the usual suspects made a big stink out of National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir's visit to the Temple Mount this past Sunday.
Palestinian Authority spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh called the visit a "flagrant attack on Al-Aqsa." The Jordanian Foreign Ministry said the visit was a "dangerous and unacceptable escalation" and "a flagrant and unacceptable violation of international law and of the historical and legal status quo in Jerusalem and its sanctities." The US State Department said that it was "concerned" about Ben-Gvir's "provocative visit" and "the accompanying inflammatory rhetoric."
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Honestly, I don't really care for Ben-Gvir's politics. But I also don't care for all the false accusations that some members of the international community make every time a member of the Israeli political establishment visits Judaism's holiest site. The Temple Mount is sovereign Israeli territory. No one has the right to tell any Israeli where they can and cannot go within the country's borders, including within Israel's capital Jerusalem.
Moreover, neither Ben-Gvir nor any other Israeli politician, past or present, who has ascended the Temple Mount has done anything to upset the so-called status quo while doing so. Did Ben-Gvir or any other Israeli politician ascending the Mount prevent Muslims from praying? No. Did Ben-Gvir or any other Israeli politician damage any Muslim holy places when they visited the Mount? No. Did Ben-Gvir or any other Israeli politician visiting the Mount threaten Muslim worshippers? No.
Israel has an impeccable record when it comes to protecting the sanctity of Jerusalem's religious sites and the right to freedom of worship. In contrast, the Jordanians destroyed more than 50 synagogues when they took over the Old City during Israel's War of Independence in 1948-49. They also converted some Jewish religious sites into animal stalls, and used Jewish tombstones from the Mount of Olives to build latrines for their soldiers. And to add insult to injury, the Jordanians prevented any Jews from accessing the Western Wall for all the 19 years that the Old City was under Jordanian rule.
Furthermore, the Palestinians' accusation that Ben-Gvir "attacked" Al-Aqsa Mosque by visiting the Temple Mount is ludicrous. You know what an attack on Al-Aqsa mosque is? It's a bunch of hooligans armed with stones, fireworks, wood planks, and iron rods barricading themselves in the mosque with the intent of rioting and provoking clashes with Israeli security forces, as some extremists did last month during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. And when Israel's security forces entered the mosque to remove these troublemakers and make the site safe for worship again, it was Israel who got criticized by the international community instead of the extremists who caused all the trouble in the first place.
It's also astounding that the US would criticize Ben-Gvir's "provocative visit", but remain silent whenever Palestinians ascend the Temple Mount carrying the flags of Hezbollah, Hamas, and various other terrorist organizations that advocate for the destruction of Israel and encourage Palestinians to slaughter innocent Jews. Clearly, the US and the rest of the international community don't see who the real provocateurs are.
Instead of continuing to falsely accuse Israel of violating the status quo on the Temple Mount, the international community should be thanking the Jewish state for maintaining the peace that allows for the freedom of worship that Muslims, Jews, and Christians all enjoy when visiting the country's holy places.
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