JERUSALEM: A far-right Israeli minister with the power to bring down the government on Thursday released a video from the flashpoint Al Aqsa mosque compound to warn Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the Gaza war.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, known for his provocative gestures and comments, said Netanyahu must not make a “surrender” accord with Hamas to bring back hostages held in Gaza since October 7.
“I have come to the most important place for Jewish people to pray for the hostages, that they come home, but not through an accord of surrender, without giving in,” Ben Gvir said in the video quickly condemned by Palestinian politicians and Jordan.
“I pray and I make efforts so that the prime minister has the energy to not give in, and that he goes all the way by reinforcing military pressure, stopping their fuel, so that we win,” said the head of the far-right Otzma Yehudit party.
Shooting the video on the compound, one of the key stakes in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, was already certain to spark controversy.
Jordan’s foreign ministry condemned Ben Gvir’s “provocative step” that “reflects the continuation of the extremist Israeli government with its unilateral measures and systematic flouting of laws”.
Situated in the Old City of occupied and annexed east Jerusalem, the Al Aqsa mosque compound is Islam’s third most holy site. Jews call it Temple Mount and consider it their most sacred site. Rabbinical law bans Jews from accessing the compound.
Since Netanyahu formed his coalition with far-right support in December 2022, Ben Gvir has repeatedly gone to the compound for visits that have been condemned by Palestinians and foreign governments as increasing tensions.
This visit comes as Netanyahu faces growing pressure from the families of hostages in Gaza to accept a ceasefire deal with Hamas that would see the release of some hostages seized on October 7 in exchange for some Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.
The Netanyahu coalition has 64 seats in the Knesset parliament, Ben Gvir’s party has six seats.
The unprecedented October 7 attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,195 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.
The militants also seized 251 hostages, 116 of whom are still in Gaza including 42 the Israeli military says are dead.
Israel’s military offensive has killed at least 38,794 people, also mostly civilians, according to figures from the Gaza health ministry.
