Statement by PLO Secretary General Dr. Saeb Erekat

Since July 14th we have faced a severe escalation in East Jerusalem provoked by Israel, the occupying power that includes measures taken regarding Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound. We have been coordinating with the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in order to confront any attempts at changing the historical Status Quo of our Holy Sites, as well as to harm our people in Palestine’s occupied capital.

I will continue this coordination with Jordan’s Foreign Minister, H.E Ayman Safadi.

President Abbas conducted an excellent phone conversation with His Highness King Abdallah of Jordan, stressing that we have a common position with regards to the defense of our Holy Sites.

Both Palestine and Jordan have a common position regarding the need by the Israeli occupier to reverse all measures taken since July 14th and respect the historical and legal status quo of all our Holy Sites in accordance with the Agreements of Status Quo for the Holy Sites.

We have seen some reports in Israeli media claiming that there’s no common position between Jordan and Palestine regarding the current situation in Jerusalem. We totally reject those baseless reports.