Turkish, Palestinian FMs talk Al-Aqsa crisis on phone

ANKARA – Anadolu Agency

Turkey’s foreign minister held a phone conversation on July 21 with his Palestinian counterpart about the recent tension after Israeli officials imposed restrictions on Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa compound. 

According to diplomatic sources, Turkey’s Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and Riyad al-Malki discussed recent developments there. 

Later on July 22, Çavuşoğlu held phone conversations on the issue with other foreign ministers, including Jordan’s Ayman Al Safadi, Pakistan’s Sartaj Aziz, and Uzbekistan’s Abdulaziz Kamilov. 

Israeli authorities last week cancelled weekly Friday prayers for the first time in nearly five decades, following a shootout that left three Palestinians and two Israeli policemen dead. 

Israel's imposition of metal detectors on the site this week triggered protests that left at least three Palestinians dead and hundreds wounded as clashes between Palestinian youths and Israeli forces broke out in several cities across the West Bank after Friday prayers.