Ankara slams Israel army 'provocation' in West Bank mosque

ANKARA

The Turkish Foreign Ministry has condemned what it called the "provocation" in a mosque in the occupied West Bank by Israeli troops who were seen reciting a Jewish prayer.

Video footage showed soldiers inside a mosque in Jenin refugee camp using loudspeakers to recite the Shema Yisrael, a central prayer in Judaism.

Towards the end of the clip, laughter can be heard as troops walk outside the mosque and a Hanukkah song rings out from the loudspeaker.

It was not clear when the footage was filmed, but Israeli forces were engaged in a deadly raid in Jenin this week that saw 11 Palestinians killed, according to the Palestinian authorities.

"We strongly condemn the provocations of Israeli soldiers who stormed the Jenin refugee camp and disrespected the sanctity of a place of worship by entering the mosque," Foreign Ministry spokesman Öncü Keçeli said in a statement on X on Dec. 14.

Ankara expects attacks on Muslim holy places in east Jerusalem and the West Bank to be ended immediately, Keçeli said, urging that the perpetrators be punished "in the most severe way."

The Israeli army said the soldiers involved had been removed from operational duties to face disciplinary procedures.

Israeli army spokesperson Daniel Hagari said in a statement: "Steps will be taken accordingly against those who don't act according to IDF [army] values."

In Gaza, where Israel is engaged in fierce fighting with Hamas and has shelled the territory for weeks, the Hamas antiquities ministry estimates more than 100 mosques have been destroyed.