By Athena Papakosta

The situation in the Middle East remains tense a few days after the violent invasion of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem by Israeli forces in the middle of the holy month of Ramadan.

The images of the raids caused a lot of reactions and led to the vertical escalation of tensions in the region with rockets fired from Lebanon, the Gaza Strip and Syria against Israel, Israeli airstrikes and strikes by Israeli artillery against these areas until death two brothers of British nationality in the West Bank and an Italian lawyer in Tel Aviv.

In Lebanon, according to a statement by Hezbollah, the secretary general of Hassan Nasrallah met with the political leader of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh yesterday, Sunday and they discussed the developments in the region, the events at the Al-Aqsa mosque and the “escalating resistance” in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Regional political developments and “the readiness of the axis of resistance and cooperation of these parties to deal with all these events and developments” were also discussed. Neither of these organizations has claimed responsibility for the attacks. However, Israel blames Hamas.

Late Saturday night and early Sunday morning, rockets were fired from Syria toward the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights. Israeli warplanes then struck military targets in Syria with state media reporting explosions in the suburbs of the capital, Damascus.

At the same time, the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, had a telephone conversation with his Israeli counterpart, Isaac Herzog, stressing to him that Muslims cannot remain silent in the face of “provocations and threats” against the Al-Aqsa mosque, adding that the hostilities now spreading to Gaza and Lebanon must not be allowed to escalate further.

It was preceded by a phone call from the president of Turkey to the Iranian president, Ebrahim Raisi, in which, as it became known, he emphasized that “the Islamic world must remain united against the Israeli attacks against Palestine.” Erdogan’s phone call to Israel’s enemy Iran was not met with satisfaction by the country’s new government, which is now restoring ties with Ankara.

In Israel the month of Ramadan is a period during which tension between Israelis and Palestinians escalates, especially in Jerusalem and the West Bank. Throughout the month, tens of thousands of people visit the holy Al Aqsa Mosque located on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. The Temple Mount is Judaism’s holiest site, while the Al Aqsa Mosque located on it is Islam’s third holiest site, making it a major flashpoint in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Jews, and any other non-Muslims interested, are allowed to visit the Temple Mount under many restrictions and at certain times for a certain amount of time. However, they are not allowed to pray there. In recent years, however, and especially after the new government of Israel took office, many government officials have visited the site asking for equal prayer rights, angering the Palestinians and the Muslim world.