Netanyahu fails to defuse tension by barring Temple Mount to MKs

In an effort to contain the current wave of Palestinian terror, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu barred ministers and members of parliament from Jerusalem's Temple Mount until further notice. The step was intended to reduce tensions and deny Palestinians a pretext for the continuing wave of terror.The step boomeranged after the Prime Minister’s Office clarified Thursday that the order applied to Arab lawmakers and public figures as well as Jewish ministers and lawmakers. Israeli Arab MK Ahmed Tibi thereupon announced that he would lead a large Arab delegation to Friday prayers on Temple Mount. Jewish lawmakers said they too would defy the order.