Jerusalem Police briefly arrested Palestinian Authority Minister for Jerusalem Affairs, Fadi al-Hadami, at his home in occupied East Jerusalem on Sunday 30 June, for what his lawyer said was connected to the visit to the Temple Mount last week with the Chilean President, Sebastián Piñera.
Palestinian Authority Prime Minister, Mohammad Shtayyeh, called for Hamadi’s release right after he was detained and said that the PA government will “remain committed to its duties toward the holy city and will continue its developmental activities there.”
Shtayyeh accused Israel of targeting any Palestinian “who works for Jerusalem and its people.”
He also called for condemning Israeli policies and measures in Jerusalem, and “ongoing attempts to Judaize the city and forge its identity.”
After his release later in the same day, Muhannad Jabara, Hadami’s lawyer, said Israeli intelligence questioned Hadami during his detention for deliberately violating "Israel’s sovereignty over Jerusalem and the Al-Aqsa mosque."
Hadami was one of the many Palestinian officials who accompanied Piñera on his tour of the holy site in the Old City of Jerusalem.
Israel had approved Piñera’s visit, but the Foreign Ministry assumed he would be accompanied by representatives of the Jerusalem Waqf Islamic religious trust, which is in charge of Islamic holy sites in Jerusalem.
The Al-Aqsa mosque is administered by the Muslim Waqf board and secured by Israeli police.
Israeli Foreign Minister, Israel Katz, said in a statement that the Israeli government "takes seriously any infringement of Israeli sovereignty on the Temple Mount (Al-Aqsa Mosque), especially one that violates an agreed-upon procedure.”
Agreements signed between Israel and the Palestinians, prohibit PA officials and institutions from conducting any kind of operation in Israel, including East Jerusalem.
However, Chile countered that Piñera’s tour of the compound was private and Hadami’s presence was not part of official protocol.
For decades now, Al-Aqsa has been one of the most sensitive issues in the Palestine-Israel conflict. The mosque, which is called Temple Mount by Israel, is the holiest site in Judaism and the third holiest site for Muslims.