October 23, 2003	Thursday	Sha’aban 26, 1424

TEL AVIV, Oct 22: Palestinians denounced on Wednesday a visit to the Al Aqsa mosque compound by Israel’s Interior Security Minister Tzahi Hanegbi.

Accompanied by Israeli police officers, Mr Hanegbi toured the site for around an hour, according to officials from the Waqf, the Muslim authority in charge of the site.

“This visit is provocative and unjustified,” Waqf director Adnane al Husseini said, comparing it to a visit to the site in Sept 2000 by then Israeli opposition leader and current Prime Minister Ariel Sharon that sparked the intifada.

The mufti of occupied Al Quds, Ekrama Sabri, said that the minister’s visit was a “provocation to the feelings of Muslims likely to exacerbate tensions”.

The visit was also condemned by Palestinian Authority minister Saeb Erakat, who said it was designed to “provoke an escalation of violence and extremism in the region”.—AFP