Turkish Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hüseyin Müftüoğlu condemned the statements of Israeli Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Emmanuel Nahshon Wednesday, which targeted Turkey and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan after remarks and warnings on Israel's restrictions at the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
In a statement released Wednesday, Müftüoğlu described Nahshon's statement as presumptuous and said Israel should return to common sense by following the status quo in the al-Haram al-Sharif compound and removing the barriers to worship freely.
"Trying to cover up the fact that East Jerusalem has been under occupation will not benefit solving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict or achieving peace and stability in the region as the ongoing Israeli occupation has reached its 50th year in East Jerusalem, West Bank and Gaza," the statement said.
An Israeli foreign ministry statement by Nahshon on Tuesday advised the Turkish president to deal with Turkey's own problems, saying "The days of the Ottoman Empire have passed."
Nahshon's statement also claimed that the Israeli government was "committed to security, liberty, freedom of worship and respect for the rights of all minorities," despite days-long protests and violent clashes in Jerusalem, during which six Palestinians and Israelis were killed and dozens of others were injured.
Müftüoğlu reiterated the peaceful coexistence between different religions and sects during Ottoman Palestine, noting that the Jewish people should know and appreciate this unprecedented tolerance the best.
Müftüoğlu's statement added that freedoms of faith and worship within Turkey's Jewish community was also guaranteed by the state.
Anger has spilled across the West Bank since last week when Israel shut East Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque, venerated by Muslims and Jews -- who call the site Temple Mount -- following a deadly shootout.
The mosque was reopened after two days, with Israel installing metal detectors and cameras at its gates. Despite calls from the Islamic world to not to offend worshippers and return to the status quo, Israel refused to remove the detectors, claiming the security measures were similar to procedures taken at other holy sites around the world.
Three Palestinians were killed Friday in protests against the Israeli measures around the holy site. Three Israelis were also killed in an attack in a settlement in the West Bank.
Upon immense international pressure, Israel removed the detectors early Tuesday.
The city of Jerusalem is sacred to members of all three Abrahamic faiths -- Muslims, Jews and Christians -- and the Al-Aqsa Mosque represents the Islamic world's third-holiest site.
