Special to WorldTribune.com

JERUSALEM — Israel has closed three Islamic charities accused of fomenting unrest on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount.

The Israel Security Agency has closed Islamic non-governmental organizations on charges of funding thugs around a holy site in Jerusalem. ISA said the NGOs were linked to Hamas and paid Muslims to attack Jews on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount.

“The charities are suspected of paying activists who go every day to the Temple Mount,” the Israeli police said. “And when groups of visitors arrive they use verbal and even physical violence against them in a manner that threatens the personal safety of the visitors and strikes at religious freedom.”

In a statement on Jan. 12, ISA and police identified the closed NGOs as Muslim Women for Al Aqsa, located in Jerusalem, as well as Al Fajr, with headquarters in Nazareth. The statement said authorities raided the two organizations and confiscated computers and documents.

Another targeted NGO was identified as Al Jafar Fund for Art and Literature. The statement said the three groups were formed in October 2014 by Israel’s Islamic Movement to foment violence against Jews on the Temple Mount.

Officials said the groups were formed after Israel banned a leading NGO in August 2014. They said the groups paid hundreds of Muslims to maintain a presence on the Temple Mount and confront Jewish visitors.

“[They sought to] to inflame tensions and cause disturbances, while harming the sovereignty of the state of Israel at the site,” ISA said.

  Israel closes Hamas-aligned NGOs said to pay for harassment on Temple Mount, WorldTribune.com