Tensions over the future of Jerusalem’s most sensitive religious sites have escalated this week after the United Kingdom issued its first formal public reaffirmation of Jordan’s longstanding custodianship role, following explosive reports of a covert US-Israeli plot to overhaul the decades-old status quo at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.
Last week, independent outlet Middle East Eye (MEE) broke the story detailing alleged plans backed by former Trump administration advisor Jared Kushner—now unaffiliated with the current US administration—and current US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee to strip the Jordanian monarchy of its historic custodianship rights, a position enshrined in decades of international agreements. Multiple anonymous officials from the US, Jordan, Palestine, as well as Western and Gulf Arab diplomatic sources confirmed the details of the proposal to MEE.
Under the reported plan, the Jordanian-backed Islamic Waqf, which currently manages administrative and religious affairs at Al-Aqsa, would be stripped of its authority. A new Israeli-controlled body would rebrand the mosque compound as a “multi-faith centre”, granting Jews equal access to the sacred Muslim site and formally permitting organized large-group Jewish prayer— a change that breaches longstanding arrangements that have prevented religious friction at the site for decades. The plan would also give Israel significant control over the appointment of imams, senior mosque leadership, and final approval over the content of weekly Friday sermons.
The revelations sparked rapid backlash from UK lawmakers, with independent MP Shockat Adam penning a formal letter dated May 29 to Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper pressing the government for a clear response. In his letter, Adam noted that many of his constituents had reached out to express deep outrage and alarm over the reported plans, emphasizing that for Palestinians and Muslim communities globally, Al-Aqsa Mosque is far more than a place of worship: it is a core symbol of national and religious identity, collective dignity, and a bulwark against ongoing territorial dispossession in the region.
Adam put four key questions to the Foreign Secretary: whether ministers had raised the reported plans directly with US and Israeli counterparts; whether the UK would continue to formally back Jordan’s custodianship role; what risk assessment had been conducted into the threat of further ethnic cleansing and regional instability stemming from changes to the holy sites’ status; and whether the government would issue a public statement opposing any efforts to weaken Jordan’s internationally recognized custodianship.
After MEE submitted Adam’s letter to the UK Foreign Office for comment, a department spokesperson issued the government’s first official stance on the controversy since MEE’s initial report broke. “We value Jordan’s important role as custodian of the Holy Sites in Jerusalem. The historic status quo arrangements at Jerusalem’s Holy Sites must be respected,” the spokesperson confirmed.
The reaffirmation aligns with longstanding official UK policy, which has long recognized Jordan’s custodianship over both Muslim and Christian holy sites across Jerusalem. It also comes amid a marked shift in the UK’s approach to the Israeli government, with British officials increasingly toughening criticism of ongoing expansion of illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. Just this week, MEE reported Wednesday that senior government sources confirm UK ministers are actively considering imposing a formal ban on imports of goods produced in those illegal settlements.