Israeli held for vowing attack at Muslim shrine

Tel Aviv, Oct 5: An Israeli Jew has been arrested for threatening to carry out an attack at a major Muslim shrine in Jerusalem and could face criminal charges, police said today.

The suspect, described in media reports as a rabbi in his early 50s, was taken into custody yesterday after making the threat about al-Aqsa mosque at a Tel Aviv hotel, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said.

''He was overheard at the hotel and, under interrogation, repeated his threat to carry out an attack at the Temple Mount,'' Rosenfeld said, using the Jewish term for the al-Aqsa plaza, which is known to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif or Noble Sanctuary.

Rosenfeld said the suspect would appear at Tel Aviv magistrates' court today and police were seeking a criminal indictment against him.

Al-Aqsa mosque, located in Arab East Jerusalem, has been a frequent flashpoint during decades of Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Israel captured East Jerusalem during a 1967 war and annexed it as its capital in a move not recognised abroad.

The mosque is Islam's third holiest shrine. Jews revere the site as the last vestige of two ancient temples.

REUTERS