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The Mufti of Jerusalem, Mohammed Hussein, center. Photo by Emil Salman / Jini

JERUSALEM (Ma'an) -- Israel forces on Wednesday released the grand mufti of Jerusalem but police said they intended to pursue an investigation into the Palestinian religious leader.

“The investigations about mufti Mohammed Hussein will continue,” an Israeli police statement said.

Hours earlier Israeli intelligence officers had broke into the mufti's home in the Jabal al-Mukabbir neighborhood of East Jerusalem and took him to the Russian Compound detention center.

"At 8:10 a.m. two vehicles from Israeli intelligence arrived at our house and detained my father, taking him to the Russian Compound detention center for interrogation," one of Hussein's sons told Ma'an.

An Israeli police spokesman told AFP that the mufti was being questioned on suspicion of involvement in a "disturbance" at the al-Aqsa compound on Tuesday.

"Some chairs were thrown at a group of Jews on the Temple Mount," which Muslims refer to as al-Haram al-Sharif, Mickey Rosenfeld told AFP of the previous day's incident.

The grand mufti is in charge of Jerusalem's Islamic holy sites, including the al-Aqsa mosque.

President Mahmoud Abbas and his resigned Prime Minister Salam Fayyad slammed the arrest.

Abbas "condemned the occupying Israeli authorities' detention of Jerusalem mufti Mohammed Hussein," his office said in a statement.

The president "demanded the Israeli government release the mufti immediately," and said "the arrest represents an audacious challenge to freedom of worship."

Fayyad, in a separate statement, said the detention was a "grave escalation."

"Fayyad considers the occupation's detention of the Mufti, Mohamad Hussein, a grave escalation in Israel's relentless violations of international law and a belligerent assault, especially in light of the Mufti's position as well as the high standing and symbolism of his office." Fayyad said.

He warned of "further deterioration if the international community does not intervene and assume its full responsibilities in reining in Israeli violations and insolence against our people and their rights as well as their holy sites and religious leaders."

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Israel detains top Palestinian Muslim cleric on Jerusalem Day

Mufti Mohammed Hussein held for several hours and questioned over disturbances at Temple Mount; Five Jewish visitors were also detained for bowing in prayer at the site.
By Nir Hasson and The Associated Press | May.08, 2013 | 4:17 PM |

Five Jewish visitors to the Temple Mount were detained Wednesday for bowing in prayer at the site, the same day a top Muslim cleric in the Palestinian territories was detained and questioned over recent disturbances at the Mount. The cleric, Mufti Mohammed Hussein, was released after several hours.

Under Israeli rule, non-Muslims may be removed from the site for praying there. On Wednesday, other visitors shouted at the five detained men and the police, though the protest was dispersed with the help of the Waqf, the Muslim religious trust that administers the site.

Visits to the Mount are continuing as usual, though tensions are rising on Jerusalem Day, the Israeli holiday that commemorates the reunification of the capital after the 1967 Six-Day War.

Thousands of police and border police have been deployed in Jerusalem, especially in the Old City. Jerusalem Day reaches its peak in the late afternoon with the annual flag-dance parade of religious-Zionist youth.

In recent years, marchers have engaged in violence and shouted racist slogans as they approached the Muslim Quarter, targeting Israeli Arabs in East Jerusalem. On Tuesday the police handed out leaflets asking shopkeepers to bring in their goods before the parade, though all shops in the area were expected to close before the marchers approached.

According to the website Kipa, the head of the Bnei Akiva yeshivas, Rabbi Chaim Druckman ,told the movement's leaders to prevent violence and racist acts during the parade. A rally with Education Minister Shai Piron on hand will be held at the Western Wall after the march.

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld says Muslim worshippers threw rocks and chairs at tourists visiting the Temple Mount on Tuesday. He would not elaborate on what the Mufti's alleged involvement in the incident was, saying the cleric could be released later. Senior clerics are rarely detained in Jerusalem.

Jordanian lawmakers have denounced the move, and in a symbolic gesture, voted that the Israeli ambassador to the kingdom be expelled.

Although Wednesday's vote in the 150-seat chamber in Amman is not binding to the Jordanian government, it underlines frustration in the kingdom over Israeli policies toward the Palestinians.

The Jordanian legislators also demanded that the kingdom's envoy be recalled from Tel Aviv and started drafting a recommendation that the government annul the 1994 Jordanian-Israeli peace treaty.

Jordan's Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour later said he would formally protest the Israeli action. There was no immediate comment from Israel.