Hamas, PA Criticize Lapid Visit to Jerusalem’s Damascus Gate, as Bennett, Abdullah Talk

Hamas and the Palestinian Authority criticized Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid’s visit to Israeli security forces near Damascus Gate in Jerusalem’s Old City on Sunday afternoon. The PA called the visit a “provocative incursion,” while Hamas said that the “storming” of the area in eastern Jerusalem is a “dangerous escalation and the occupation will be responsible for its consequences.” Following the visit, Palestinian worshippers rioted in the area around Damascus Gate following prayers and the end of the daily fast for the holy Muslim month of Ramadan. The Muslim worshippers threw rocks and bottles and other objects at police officers for the second night in a row. Security forces responded with stun grenades and other measures; 10 rioters were arrested. On Sunday afternoon, Israel’s Prime Minister Naftali Bennett spoke by phone with Jordan’s King Abdullah in honor of Ramadan, the first call between the two leaders since Bennett made a secret visit to Amman in July. During the call, Bennett thanked Abdullah for his “firm statement against the terrorist attacks that have taken place in Israel in recent days.” Abdullah emphasized “the importance of achieving calm in order to avoid any escalation in the Palestinian territories” and called for “removing all obstacles to Muslim prayers at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, particularly with the start of the holy month of Ramadan, and to prevent provocations that could lead to an escalation.” Meanwhile, undercover officers from the Israel Police’s Yamam counterterrorism unit detained a Palestinian man who was in Israel illegally on the Route 6 highway on Sunday night, who was suspected of planning a terror attack. He was taken for questioning by the Shin Bet security service.