Israel to restrict holy site
Says collapse of mosque feared
By Karin Laub, Associated Press | October 14, 2004

JERUSALEM -- Israel said yesterday it would severely limit the access of Muslim worshippers to Jerusalem's holiest site during the holy month of Ramadan, fearing it could collapse.

Angry Muslim clerics dismissed that premise, saying that Arab engineers have assured them the Al Aqsa Mosque compound is stable. They accused Israel of exaggerating the danger in hopes of increasing its control over the site, which is administered by the Islamic Trust.

Israeli police and archeologists warned that because of a recent earthquake, part of the compound, Islam's third holiest shrine, might collapse under large crowds of believers during Ramadan, which begins this weekend.

The sacred hilltop, revered by Jews as the site of their biblical temples, is one of the most sensitive spots in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and riots there in 2000 escalated into the current round of fighting. Israeli attempts to restrict the number of worshippers could lead to more Palestinian protests.

Israel's police minister, Gideon Ezra, said he wants the Islamic Trust, or Waqf, to declare the southeastern corner of the holy site compound off-limits.

If the Waqf does not agree, "we will view this as a real and immediate threat and we can't let this happen . . . we will have to limit the number of worshippers to 50,000 or 60,000," Ezra told Israel Army Radio. The compound holds about 250,000 people and is often filled to capacity during the main Ramadan prayers.