Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid gives a press briefing at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, April 24, 2022. Debbie Hill/Pool via REUTERS

Foreign Minister Yair Lapid reiterated Sunday that Israel has no intention to divide Jerusalem’s Temple Mount between religions or permit non-Muslims to pray there, as violence continued to erupt this week around the holy site.

“Israel is committed to the status quo on the Temple Mount. Muslims pray on the Temple Mount, non-Muslims visit,” Israel’s top diplomat stated at a briefing to the foreign press in Jerusalem. “There is no change. There will be no change.”

Lapid’s reaffirmation came after the Arab League alleged that Israel was violating long-standing practice at the Temple Mount by permitting Jews to pray at the holy site.

“We call on Muslim moderates, on Muslim states, to act against this fake news, and to work together with us to ensure our common interest: preservation of the status quo and calming the situation,” Lapid urged.

Israeli forces have been on high alert in recent weeks securing flashpoint sites, as the Muslim holy month of Ramadan coincided with both the Passover and Easter holidays. Israeli security forces in recent days faced renewed clashes with Palestinian demonstrators around the Temple Mount.

Lapid accused the Hamas terror group of sending 200 to 300 extremists to incite riots around the Al-Aqsa mosque compound.

“During Ramadan, terrorist organizations have been trying to hijack the Al-Aqsa mosque, in order to create an outbreak of violence in Jerusalem, and from there, a violent conflict across the country,” Lapid said. “Hamas and Islamic Jihad extremists, burst into Al-Aqsa mosque in the early mornings, again and again.”

“They brought weapons into the mosque. They threw rocks and explosives from within it, and used it as a base to incite violent riots,” he added.

Israeli police entered the mosque twice in recent days to stop rioters and secure freedom of worship to tens of thousands of Muslims arriving at the Temple Mount, Lapid explained.

“It is not Israel that endangered worshippers — It is the terrorist organizations who endangered them,” he asserted. “If you do not remove the rioters immediately at the start, it leads to much greater violence later.”

Israel’s security efforts allowed 95,000 peaceful Muslim worshippers to pray at the Temple Mount on Saturday, Lapid said.

“The only disruption to prayers yesterday, was a Hamas rally which took place on the Temple Mount,” he remarked. “Hamas terrorists stood there and openly called for the murder of Jews.”

“That is Hamas’s prayer — an antisemitic call for the slaughter of innocents.”

Lapid also referred to Israel’s “substantial efforts” to contain any violence from Jewish extremist groups. “Throughout this period, security services ensured no provocations were carried out,” he said.

Amid escalating tensions in Jerusalem, six rockets have been fired at Israel over the past week from the Gaza Strip, which is controlled by the militant Hamas group.

“Israel will not accept rocket fire from Gaza,” Lapid said. “We have a zero-tolerance policy for attacks on our territory.”

The renewal of rocket fire happened after a couple of months of relative calm, and Israeli efforts to double the number of workers permitted into Israel from Gaza.

“Before Ramadan, we announced that if this period would pass quietly, we would double the number of work permits from Gaza to 20,000 […] who would be able to work daily in Israel and support their families,” Lapid said. “In light of recent events, we will have to examine this decision carefully.”

Lapid disclosed that since the beginning of the year, the Israel Security Agency in joint operations with the Israel Defense Forces and the Israel Police have thwarted a total of 126 terror attacks.