The Senate's Palestine Committee on Tuesday urged Israel to respect the historical and legal status quo in occupied Jerusalem amid the 'serious' escalation at the Al Aqsa Mosque.

It dismissed Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's latest remarks that only Israel had control of the holy city, adding that his statement is a continuation of the hostile position long held by Israeli governments in gross violation of the international law and UN resolutions.

The committee called for unified efforts to defend Jerusalem and Islamic and Christian holy shrines and support the courageous stance of His Majesty King Abdullah II towards the Palestinian cause and the historical Hashemite custodianship over the holy sites and maintaining the holy city's Arab identity.

'The Israeli prime minister's statement laid bare the true designs and racism of the Israeli government and the positions of right-wing Zionism that seeks to empty Palestine from its own people and pursue the policy of bringing in Jewish settlers.

The committee lauded King Abdullah's efforts at the regional and international levels to safeguard the Palestinian people's rights and find a solution to their cause based on the two-state solution leading to a Palestinian state on the borders of June 4, 1967, with Jerusalem as its capital.

The Senate's Palestine Committee on Tuesday urged Israel to respect the historical and legal status quo in occupied Jerusalem amid the 'serious' escalation at the Al Aqsa Mosque.

It dismissed Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's latest remarks that only Israel had control of the holy city, adding that his statement is a continuation of the hostile position long held by Israeli governments in gross violation of the international law and UN resolutions.

The committee called for unified efforts to defend Jerusalem and Islamic and Christian holy shrines and support the courageous stance of His Majesty King Abdullah II towards the Palestinian cause and the historical Hashemite custodianship over the holy sites and maintaining the holy city's Arab identity.

'The Israeli prime minister's statement laid bare the true designs and racism of the Israeli government and the positions of right-wing Zionism that seeks to empty Palestine from its own people and pursue the policy of bringing in Jewish settlers.

The committee lauded King Abdullah's efforts at the regional and international levels to safeguard the Palestinian people's rights and find a solution to their cause based on the two-state solution leading to a Palestinian state on the borders of June 4, 1967, with Jerusalem as its capital.