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The foreign ministers of eight Muslim-majority nations issued a joint statement Tuesday condemning what they described as escalating Israeli settler raids into one of Islam's holiest sites, warning that the actions risk fueling regional instability and undermining international peace efforts.
Türkiye, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates signed the June 2 declaration, which targeted repeated incursions by extremist Israeli settlers into Al-Aqsa Mosque and Al-Haram Al-Sharif in occupied East Jerusalem, carried out under the protection of Israeli military. The statement also condemned the raising of the Israeli flag within the compound's courtyards.
The eight governments characterized the actions as "a flagrant violation of international law," relevant United Nations resolutions, and the historical and legal status quo governing the holy sites.
The statement was unambiguous on the question of jurisdiction and access. The signatories reiterated that the entire Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, covering 144 dunams, is "a place of worship exclusively for Muslims," and affirmed that the Jerusalem Endowments and Al-Aqsa Mosque Affairs Department, an entity affiliated with the Jordanian Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs, holds exclusive legal authority to administer and regulate entry to the site.
The ministers also acknowledged the special role of Jordan's historical Hashemite custodianship over the holy sites, a longstanding arrangement that has been a source of diplomatic friction as Israeli government ministers and nationalist groups have pushed for expanded Jewish access to the compound, known to Jews as the Temple Mount.
Beyond the immediate incursions, the joint statement accused Israel of carrying out "continued and systematic violations" designed to alter the historical, legal, and demographic character of occupied East Jerusalem and to undermine the sanctity of both its Islamic and Christian holy sites. The ministers said they categorically reject any attempts to change the legal or historical status quo in Jerusalem.
The eight nations held Israeli authorities directly responsible for halting what they called escalatory behavior and warned that repeated violations "exacerbate tensions, fuel instability and extremism" and constitute a clear breach of Israel's obligations under international law. They called for an immediate end to all such practices.
The statement closed with a reaffirmation of solidarity with the Palestinian people and support for their right to self-determination. The eight foreign ministers endorsed the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state along the 1967 lines, with East Jerusalem as its capital, in line with the two-state solution, international law, relevant UN resolutions, and the Arab Peace Initiative.
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