Jordan recalls envoy to Israel over clashes at Al-Aqsa Mosque

AMMAN - The Associated Press

Israeli security forces stand guard near Jerusalem's Dome of the Rock mosque in the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, Nov. 5. AFP Photo

Jordan recalled its ambassador to Israel on Nov. 5 and moved to file a U.N. complaint after police clashed with Palestinians inside the flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque compound, official media said.

Prime Minister Abdullah Nsur asked the foreign minister to "recall the Jordanian ambassador from Tel Aviv in protest at Israel's escalation on the Al-Aqsa mosque compound," the Petra news agency reported.

He also instructed him to lodge a complaint with the UN Security Council against "repeated attacks by Israel against Muslim holy sites," it said, adding that the procedure was under way.

Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque compound, which is holy to both Jews and Muslims, is one of the most sensitive sites in the Middle East.

It has been the scene of frequent confrontations in recent months, largely triggered by Palestinian fears that Israel was poised to allow Jewish prayer at the site.

Jordan, which administered the West Bank including east Jerusalem before Israel seized it in 1967, has responsibility for managing the mosque compound and other holy sites in the city's Israeli-annexed eastern sector.

Jordan's status as custodian is enshrined in its 1994 peace treaty with Israel.

King Abdullah II vowed on Nov. 2 to oppose any Israeli attempt to change the status of Muslim or Christian holy sites in Jerusalem.

Jordan's Islamist opposition, the Muslim Brotherhood, said it would organise a mass protest in Amman on Nov. 7 against the situation at the mosque.