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An Israeli group is suing Muslim authorities responsible for renovation work on the Temple Mount.

The Israel Law Center said over the weekend it had filed a private lawsuit against the Waqf at the Jerusalem District Court.

The Waqf, which answers to the Palestinian Authority and Jordan rather than to Israel, says its Temple Mount work is part of efforts to improve the infrastructure serving Muslim holy places at the site.

But Waqf officials have angered Israel in the past by denying there are historical Jewish links to the Temple Mount. The situation is especially explosive given the current Israeli-Palestinian talks on possible shared sovereignty in Jerusalem.

“This legal action is a moral obligation not only for the Jewish people, but also for the Christian community, which has significant interests in safeguarding the Temple Mount as well,” said Israel Law Center director Nitsana Darshan-Leitner.

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