Qasr al-Yahud
Qasr al-YahudIsrael News photo: IDF Spokesperson

State prosecutors filed on Thursday an indictment in the Jerusalem Magistrates Court against the 15 nationalists who jumped the border fence with Jordan, near Qasr al-Yehud, earlier this week.

The nationalists are accused of vandalizing IDF property, entering a closed military zone and rioting. Eight of the defendants are minors and 12 others will be released on bail.

The activists jumped the border fence to protest Jordan’s interference on the Temple Mount. They subsequently barricaded themselves in a structure at Qasr Al Yehud that they renamed “Metzudat Ze'ev [Ze'ev Jabotinsky fortress],” after Likud party headquarters in Tel Aviv.

They were protesting Jordan's warning that replacing the Mughrabi Bridge near the Temple Mount would result in a religious war in Jerusalem's Old City, and were later removed by security forces. 

One of the activists from Qasr al-Yehud, Meir Goldmintz, told Arutz Sheva on Thursday that the goal of the incident was to send a clear message that Jordan belongs to the people of Israel as well.

“It’s part of the promised land,” Goldmintz said. “I remind Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu that the Likud’s platform included both sides of the Jordan.”

He added that the activists had no intention of breaking the law.

“Our intention by entering Qasr al-Yehud was not to agitate the Middle East but simply make a point that Jordan is ours,” Goldmintz stressed. “We never crossed into Jordan and we didn’t break the law. I’m glad we generated a public debate and we hope that the government will act on it.”