Israeli govt meeting near Jerusalem site angers Palestinians

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gestures during a special cabinet meeting for Jerusalem Day, held in the Western Wall tunnels in Jerusalem's Old City on Sunday. (REUTERS/Gali Tibbon/Pool)

JERUSALEM: A senior Palestinian official sharply condemned Israel for holding a government meeting near a sensitive Jerusalem site.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Cabinet met Sunday in tunnels that run near one of the holiest sites in Jerusalem for a special session marking the anniversary of Israel’s capture of the city’s eastern sector, in the 1967 war. Saeb Erekat called the meeting a “provocation” that sent a “clear message to the Palestinian people.”
The fate of the site, sacred to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary, is at the heart of the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.
A tunnel opening in 1996 sparked Palestinian protests that led to deadly clashes.
Israel considers all Jerusalem its capital. Palestinians claim east Jerusalem as their future capital.