Police decided on Saturday night to allow far-right Otzma Yehudit leader MK Itamar Ben-Gvir to visit the Temple Mount on Sunday morning ahead of the Jerusalem Day flag march.
The Jerusalem Police District decided after a situation assessment to allow the visit, although journalists will not go up with Ben-Gvir. The MK is set to give a statement to the press on Sunday morning before going up to the Temple Mount.
A report in Haaretz said that officials from other security bodies, such as the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), were part of the security assessment meeting and also did not raise objections to Ben-Gvir’s visit, saying the security situation that might develop due to the visit could be controlled.
Ben-Gvir's plans
Last week, the far-right MK told the Knesset that he was planning to visit the Temple Mount on Sunday.
In late April, Ben-Gvir blasted the Shin Bet and its head Ronen Bar for a number of failures that have led to a string of attacks against Israelis.
“While the Temple Mount is burning and terror attacks are increasing, the Shin Bet needs to deal with the security of the nation and not briefings against me,” he wrote on Twitter. “Words can kill!”
Last week, the Shin Bet thwarted a Hamas terror cell of east Jerusalem residents who planned to carry out attacks on various Israeli targets, including Ben-Gvir. They also planned to build improvised explosive devices for a number of bombing attacks and plotted to kidnap Israeli soldiers.
Anna Ahronheim contributed to this report.