Temple Mount

Palestinians were set to return to pray at a sensitive Jerusalem holy site on July 27 after Israeli authorities removed controversial new security measures, potentially ending a nearly two-week crisis that sparked deadly unrest.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry has condemned a statement by the Israeli Foreign Ministry about President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, calling the comments "presumptuous," amid a row over an escalation in the al-Aqsa mosque. 

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on July 26 that the removal of metal detectors from the entrances to the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City was a right move but not enough. 

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has urged Muslims across the world to "visit" and "protect" Jerusalem, slamming what he said was an "unacceptable" infringement on Palestinians' rights to a holy site, according to the Independent.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has urged Muslims across the world to “visit” and “protect” Jerusalem.
The leader’s comments on Tuesday came after days of violence sparked over access to the al-Aqsa mosque in the city’s Noble Sanctuary, known as the Temple Mount in Judaism.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on July 24 that Israel is headed towards isolation because of measures imposed at the al-Aqsa compound in East Jerusalem.

"Equating the Muslims who come for worship with terrorists is a great eclipse of reason," Erdoğan said at a news conference at the Esenboğa Airport after returning from a two-day visit to the Gulf region.

Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu criticized Israel's "intervention" at the al-Aqsa mosque, which has led to the escalation of tensions in Jerusalem. 

"The right to faith and worship is the basic right of all people," Kılıçdaroğlu said on his official Twitter account on July 23.

As tensions mount in Jerusalem after new Israeli security measures at the highly sensitive Al-Aqsa mosque in the Old City of Jerusalem, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım has urged calm, stressing the Islamic world's sensitivity on the issue.      

"Their implementation is wrong," Yıldırım said about the Israeli measures.

Israeli police barred men under 50 from entering Jerusalem's Old City for Friday Muslim prayers as tensions rose and protests erupted over new security measures at a highly sensitive holy site.

Israeli police have banned Muslim men under the age of 50 from a contested shrine in Jerusalem, according to the Independent.

The ban comes ahead of feared mass protests over the installation of metal detectors aimed at increasing security at the site. 

Muslim leaders have called for mass protests at Friday's noon prayers.

The shrine is revered by both Muslims and Jews.