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Temple Mount Security Cameras Proposed to Help Calm Tensions

CBN

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JERUSALEM, Israel -- Palestinian terror attacks have continued despite the announcement that Israel is planning to install security cameras on the Temple Mount in an attempt to calm tensions and stop attacks against non-Muslim visitors to the site.

Over the weekend, there were at least six stabbings and one firebomb attack, wounding seven Israelis and leaving two attackers dead. On Monday, an Israeli soldier was wounded in a stabbing attack.The terrorist was neutralized.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said 24-hour surveillance on the Temple Mount will benefit Israel. He said it will disprove the claim that Israel is changing the status quo there and will show where the real provocations are coming from.

"Israel will continue to enforce its longstanding policy: Muslims pray on the Temple Mount; non-Muslims visit the Temple Mount," Netanyahu said.

Israel says the wave of Palestinian terrorism and violence is due to incitement against Israel, particularly regarding the Temple Mount.

Secretary of State John Kerry met with Netanyahu and then in Jordan with King Abdullah and Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas. Kerry said the security cameras suggested by King Abdullah were an excellent idea.

"This will provide comprehensive visibility and transparency, and that could really be a game changer in discouraging anybody from disturbing the sanctity of the holy site," Kerry said.

One Palestinian official said Israel would use the cameras as a trap to arrest Palestinians.

The Temple Mount is the site of two biblical Jewish Temples, the second of which was destroyed 2,000 years ago. The golden Dome of the Rock and al-Aksa Mosque occupy the site now, known to Muslims as the Haram al-Sharif.

Since 1967, Israel has maintained overall security on the Temple Mount. The Jordanian Islamic authorities are responsible for the religious shrines.

Netanyahu welcomed Jordan's involvement in resolving the crisis.

"Israel believes that those who visit or worship on the Temple Mount must be allowed to do so in peace, free from violence, from threats, from intimidation and from provocations," Kerry said.

Some Israeli activists say banning Jewish prayer is discrimination. Many say the Temple Mount should be a place of prayer for all nations.

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