MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan criticized on Monday the Israeli authorities' attempts to abandon the Muslim legacy in East Jerusalem.
"The bill to ban the Adhan [the Muslim call to prayer] is pending at the Israeli parliament. It is disgraceful for those who lecture us about the freedom of religion to turn a blind eye to this attempt. Turkey will not let these attempts against freedom of belief [prevail]," Erdogan said, as quoted by Daily Sabbah newspaper.
He also criticized the attempts by the Israeli to change the status quo of the Al-Aqsa mosque, one of the major religious sites of the Muslims, which is located on a hill called Temple Mount, the most sacred place in Judaism.
"As a Muslim community, we need to visit the Al-Aqsa Mosque often, each day that Jerusalem is under occupation is an insult to us," the Turkish president stressed.
Despite the prohibition of the non-Muslim worship in Al-Aqsa compound, the Israeli authorities regularly allow Jewish visitors to carry out religious worship in the mosque and ban Palestinians from entering it, according to media reports.
Over the decades, Palestinians have been seeking diplomatic recognition for their independent state on the territories of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, which is partially occupied by Israel, and the Gaza Strip. The Israeli government refuses to recognize Palestine as an independent political and diplomatic entity and continues to build settlements in the occupied areas, despite objections from the United Nations.
