Jerusalem Police declared on Sunday that they will be barring entry to the Temple Mount to all non-Muslims, citing potential threats of incitement, according to Israel Radio. The announcement came after Moshe Feiglin, who serves as head of the Manhigut Yehudit (Jewish Leadership) faction in Likud and recently launched an unsuccessful challenge to Netanyahus role as party leader, said that he intended to go up to the Temple Mount on Sunday, something he claims to have done on the 19th of every Jewish month for the past 10 years. According to the Israel Radio report, police said they will not allow any religious representative to use the Temple Mount or Western Wall for political means. The Temple Mount is one of Jerusalems most sensitive sites and has often been a flashpoint for tensions between Jews and Arabs. The 2001 visit to the Temple Mount by then MK Ariel Sharon is credited with being one of the main catalysts of the Second Intifada. In December 2011, citing safety concerns and a high danger of collapse, the Jerusalem Municipality closed down the Mughrabi bridge, the only bridge to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem that provides access for non-Muslims. The original stone ramp was severely damaged in 2004, when an earthquake and storm caused part of it to collapse, and since then a temporary wooden structure has stood in its place. Plans to build a more permanent structure have been delayed due to fears that Palestinians will claim Israel intends to take control of the Al-Aqsa mosque, which sits on the Temple Mount and which Sunni Muslims consider their third-holiest site. Directors of the Muslim Waqf, which oversees the Temple Mount, expressed outrage over the decision to close the bridge, claiming it was made without consulting them. They said the move could be interpreted by Muslims as an Israeli attempt to intervene in the daily affairs of the Temple Mount. The controversial decision was rescinded by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the day after and the bridge was re-opened.
