Erdoğan, Abbas discuss escalation at al-Aqsa

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan discussed with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas a recent escalation at the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem in a phone call on July 20. 

Erdoğan stressed that it was unacceptable that there were restrictions at the entrance of the mosque, also known as Haram al-Sharif, state-run Anadolu Agency quoted anonymous presidential sources as saying. 

Meanwhile, Presidential Spokesperson İbrahim Kalın said developments regarding the al-Aqsa mosque were disrupting and unacceptable. "We consider these developments as attempts to change the status of al-Aqsa mosque, and we are concerned about that," he said at a press conference on July 20.
 
He said the preservation of the current status of the holy site is the primary right of the Palestinians based on international laws, stressing Turkey's support for the people.

Speaking to reporters at a news conference in Ankara, Kalın urged the international community to take steps to de-escalate tensions in the compound.

Kalın called on Europe and the U.S. to "break their silence."

Conflicts over the holy site, revered by Muslims and Jews, have repeatedly triggered Israeli-Palestinian confrontations. The site - known as the Temple Mount to Jews and Haram al-Sharif, or Noble Sanctuary, to Muslims - is at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Al-Aqsa mosque is the third holiest site in Islam after the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.

The latest escalation began last week when three Palestinian gunmen launched an attack from there, killing two Israeli policemen at a gate to the Muslim-administered compound.

In response, Israel began installing metal detectors, a move Muslim religious leaders and Palestinian politicians...