The latest on the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif crisis

What We’re Reading

Jerusalem

Why the metal detectors at Al-Aqsa are such a big deal,

“Palestinians aren’t against security measures at the Al-Aqsa compound — they are against changing the delicate status quo at one of Islam’s holiest sites,” writes Noa Levy.

Six things that must be said about the violence in Jerusalem and West Bank,

“There can be no justification for murder, the violence in Jerusalem isn’t about metal detectors, and there is a way out of this,” writes Haggai Matar.

A New Generation of Palestinians Leading Temple Mount Protests,

“The frustration and anger is being led mainly by the generation born after Oslo, the one that was promised a state and self-determination and now sees only the inability to make that dream come true,” writes Jack Khoury.

Three Palestinians shot dead in Jerusalem clashes, three settlers stabbed to death,

At least two Palestinians are killed by Israeli security forces during demonstrations over the closure of the Al-Aqsa compound. One Palestinian was reportedly shot dead by an Israeli settler. Later Friday night, three Israeli settlers were stabbed to death in a West Bank settlement.

An Attack at the Israeli Embassy in Jordan,

The shooting at the compound in Amman may be related to recent protests over the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Diplomatic Crisis With Jordan: Embassy Guard Who Killed Assailant Prevented From Returning to Israel,

An unusual security incident in which a Jordanian civilian tried to attack an Israeli embassy guard in Jordan on Sunday and was shot dead has become a diplomatic crisis. Jordan is barring the Israeli guard from leaving the country.

Occupation/Human rights

Senior Israeli gov’t minister warns Palestinians of ‘third Nakba’,

Tzachi Hanegbi, a close ally of Netanyahu, threatens Palestinians with ethnic cleansing in response to the latest round of violence.

Is Abbas serious about freezing security coordination with Israel?,

“Will Palestinian security forces open fire on Israeli soldiers who raid Palestinian cities? Is the PA still going to hand over the names of wanted Palestinians? Or is it all a bluff?” asks Menachem Klein.

US-Israeli/Palestinian relations

Trump Envoy Jason Greenblatt to Arrive in Israel on Monday in Bid to De-escalate Temple Mount Crisis,

A senior official in the Trump administration said that Greenblatt is heading to the Middle East ‘to support efforts to reduce tensions in the region.’

Palestinians, Israelis disappointed over US envoy's talks,

The Palestinian leadership believes that much of the Trump administration’s efforts on the Israeli-Palestinian issue are focused on economic confidence-building measures, not advancing the two-state solution.

Democrats in Congress Rethink Anti-boycott Bill in Wake of ACLU Warning,

Democrats on Capitol Hill are reexamining their support for a bipartisan bill intended to fight boycotts against Israel and the settlements after the American Civil Liberties Union warned U.S. senators last week that it endangers free speech in the United States and could lead to citizens’ going to prison simply for expressing a political opinion.

Israeli politics

Lapid lauds residents of illegal outpost slated to be demolished,

Speaking at a ceremony marking the inauguration of a new monument in memory of three fallen IDF soldiers in the Netiv Ha’avot outpost on Sunday, Yesh Atid chairman Yair Lapid praised the settlers present for their bravery.