This is an entry from: LIVE BLOG: Jerusalem on the brink
Abbas: Closure of al-Aqsa is 'announcement of war' on Palestinian people
30 October 2014 09:12 GMT
Palestinian authority President Mahmoud Abbas said on Thursday morning that the closure of al-Aqsa Mosque and the compound surrounding it is "an announcement of war", on the Palestinian people, according to AFP.
He had said in a speech on Wednesday night that "Jerusalem and the Islamic and Christian holy sites in it are a red line."
Responding to the closure of al-Aqsa, the Orthodox Bishop Ata Allah Huna said on Thursday morning: "We strongly deplore, in the name of Jerusalem's churches, Israel's closure of al-Aqsa."
Further underscoring the war of words between Israeli and Palestinian politicians, the Israeli tourism minister said on Thursday morning that Mahmoud Abbas is Israel's "primary enemy."