Amid heightened tensions with the Palestinians, Israel today outlawed the Islamic Movement in the country to "stop dangerous incitement" and "terror" at a key religious site in east Jerusalem by the group which the Jewish state alleged instigated the recent violence.
"The Israeli cabinet's decision was made after a series of in-depth discussions with legal and security advisers to stop the dangerous incitementand to prevent harm to innocent civilians," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.
"My governmentwill continue to take whatever action is necessary against incitement and terror,"Netanyahu said in a statement, adding,"we continue to invest resources in favour of the citizens of Israel, Jews and Arabs alike".
The Prime Minister's Office issued the statementafter Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon signed the declaration as per his authority under Israel's emergency regulations.
Any organisation, or individual, belonging to the northern branch of the Islamic Movement or found assistingit in any way will be committing a criminal offence and is liable for imprisonment, said the announcement banning the movement.
The order also gavethe government permission to confiscate all land that belongs to the Islamist organisation.
A senior official told Haaretz daily that the cabinet haddecided to outlaw the the Islamic Movementtwo weeks ago authorising the prime minister and the defence minister to take a decision as to when to publicise it.
The Prime Minister's Office said that removing the branch is an essential step in maintaining public safety.
"This move is not directed against the Arab and Muslim public in Israel, the great majority of which upholds the laws of the state and disavows incitement and terrorism," it stressed adding, "the leader of the northern branch of the Islamic Movement has for years led an incitement campaign falsely labeling Al-Aqsa 'in danger,' falsely accusing Israel of intent to harm the mosque and deviate from the status quo".
Led by Sheikh Raed Salah, the northern branch is the Islamist Hamas' sister-movement,according to official documents on the government decision.
The Islamic Movement is a faction of the Muslim Brotherhood, and the two movements share an extreme ideology and a common goal - to destroy Israel, the documents said.
The current spate of violence that began in September has seen young Palestinians target Israelis with knife, gun and car-ramming attacks. The unrest has killed 12 Israelis and 83 Palestinians.
Israel has accused the Islamic Movement of inciting the violence by spreading rumours that the Jewish state wanted to change the status quo on the Temple Mount, the holiest site in Judaism, called Haram al-Sharif (noble sanctuary) by Muslims, and which also houses the holy Al-Aqsa mosque, the third holiest site in Islam.
