Israel detains Passover sacrifice campaigner as Al Aqsa tensions simmer

An Israeli campaigner for Jewish prayer rights at the Jerusalem compound that houses al-Aqsa mosque was detained on Monday, in an apparent bid to preempt any attempt to hold a Passover sacrifice at the site while Palestinians mark Ramadan.

The compound, in Jerusalem’s Old City, is revered by Muslims and Jews. It is a frequent flashpoint in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and is monitored especially closely by authorities during religious holidays.

Since capturing the site in the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Israel has maintained a long-standing status quo arrangement preventing non-Muslim worship there.

But fringe Jewish religious group the Temple Mount Administration has been calling for fellow activists to bring Paschal lambs — a Jewish animal sacrifice — to sacrifice at the site on Wednesday, the beginning of the Passover festival.