US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Thursday that Jordan, Israel and the Palestinians were committed to taking “concrete steps” to ease strife over a volatile holy site in Jerusalem.
Speaking at a news conference after a summit meeting in Amman with Jordan’s King Abdullah II and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and after a separate meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Kerry refused to elaborate on the nature of the steps.
However, he said that Netanyahu had shown his concern by coming to Jordan and that Abbas had pledged to prevent incitement to violence and to try to change the climate.
Photo: Reuters
“The proof will not be in the words, but in the actions,” Kerry added.
Abbas and Netanyahu, who have not met in years, did not meet in Amman or attend the news conference, which was held at the Jordanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs building. The meeting between Kerry, King Abdullah and Netanyahu took place at the royal palace.
Jordanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Nasser Judeh, who joined Kerry at the news conference, said King Abdullah had impressed upon Kerry how important the issue was for Jordan, the official custodian of the holy site revered by Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary, the location of Al Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock, and by Jews as Temple Mount, where their ancient temples once stood.
The recent tensions have strained Israel’s alliance with Jordan and have fueled clashes between Palestinian protesters and Israeli security forces inside the compound and around East Jerusalem. They also helped spur a series of deadly Palestinian knife and vehicular attacks against Israelis.
The friction has been brewing for months, with Israeli nationalist activists and some right-wing politicians pushing for increased Jewish access and prayer rights at the site and Palestinian activists responding with increasingly noisy and violent protests.
The attempted assassination, by a Palestinian man, of a prominent Jewish activist who had pressed for Jewish prayer rights in the compound led to a rare closing of the site for one day in late October. Last week, Jordan withdrew its ambassador from Israel, citing Israeli violations.
Regarding any possible return of the ambassador, Judeh said Jordan would wait to see if Israel made good on its commitment to ease the tensions.
Netanyahu has repeatedly pledged that he will maintain the “status quo” at the site, which allows Jews to visit, but bars non-Muslim prayer there.
He has also emphasized respect for Jordan’s special role, enshrined in the peace treaty that Israel and Jordan signed two decades ago.
However, the Palestinians and Israelis have accused each other of provocations.
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