Jordan Calls Emergency Arab-Islamic Meeting Over Threat to Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Compound

Jordan’s foreign minister Ayman Safadi announced an emergency gathering of foreign ministers from Arab League states, Turkey, Indonesia, Malaysia and Pakistan on Wednesday. The summit will address what Amman describes as an “imminent” threat that Israeli actions could lead to a takeover of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound—known to Jews as the Temple Mount—and spark a broader religious conflict.

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Jordan’s custodianship of the Al-Aqsa compound dates to Ottoman times and was codified in the 1878 Treaty of Berlin, later reaffirmed in the 1994 Israeli-Jordanian peace treaty. The “status-quo” permits Muslims to pray at the site while non-Muslims may visit but not conduct worship. Recent incursions by Jewish religious extremists, including a large-scale visit on July 23 in which more than 2,000 Israelis—many settlers led by National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir—stormed the compound, have been described by Jordan as the worst violation in modern history.

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• 2,000+ Israeli participants entered the site on July 23.

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• Jordan’s population stands at 11.5 million, with more than half descended from Palestinian refugees.

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Safadi framed the issue as a “red line” that Jordan will not allow Israel to cross, warning that displacement of Palestinians from the West Bank into Jordan would violate international law and constitute a “tremendous escalation.” He linked these concerns to Israel’s refusal to renew the water agreement and to ongoing settlement activity.

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Member of Parliament Dima Tahboub, spokesperson for the Islamist Umma party, said anti-normalisation sentiment has grown due to Israel’s annexation plans, water-share denial, and daily challenges to Jordan’s custodianship at Al-Aqsa.

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• “Our position that this is a red line that we will not allow to be crossed. We have made that known to everybody that we will do whatever it takes to prevent any attempt at Israeli displacement of Palestinians into Jordan,” — Ayman Safadi

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• “Anti-normalisation sentiment here has grown even larger than before due to the Zionist state’s plans of annexation of the West Bank, the denial of Jordan’s share in the water agreement and also the daily challenges to the custodianship at al-Aqsa mosque,” — Dima Tahboub

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The emergency meeting on Wednesday will seek to rally diplomatic opposition to any unilateral changes at the holy site. Jordan warns that the upcoming Jewish holidays in September—when larger numbers of Israeli worshippers are expected—coincide with Israel’s election campaign, raising the risk of further provocations. The summit’s outcome could shape regional responses ahead of the October Israeli elections.

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