Muslim anger was spreading last night over Israeli construction works near the Al-Aqsa Mosque, Islam’s third holiest site.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s spiritual leader, joined other Islamic leaders in condemning the work. He said that Israel should be made to regret its actions.

“Silence in this regard is not permissible at all and action is necessary from some leaders in the Arab world,” he said. The controversy has coincided with crisis talks in Mecca where rival Palestinian political factions are trying to end weeks of violence by agreeing to form a national unity government.

In Jerusalem the Israeli building project is taking place on the most sensitive ground. The Al Haram al Sharif, or Noble Sanctuary compound, is where the second Palestinian uprising erupted in 2000 following a controversial visit by Ariel Sharon, who was then the Israeli opposition leader.

It contains the Al-Aqsa mosque, the site where, Muslims believe, the Prophet Muhammad ascended to heaven. It is also revered by Jews as the site of their ancient temple, destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD.

The Israeli Antiquities Authority this week began work on building a new walkway to the site’s Mughrabi Gate, the only access point for nonMuslim visitors, which collapsed three years ago after an earthquake and a heavy snowfall.

Since then a temporary wooden ramp has been in place but Israel is now beginning work to replace it with a permanent structure, a move that has also angered senior Israeli archeologists.

Lebanon’s radical Shia party Hezbollah called the construction work “a blatant aggression on the Arab and Muslim sacred places” while the Saudi Arabia-based chief of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference accused Israel of flouting international law.

The Waqf religious trust in Jerusalem, which administers the site, accused Israel of undermining the foundations of the Al-Aqsa compound. Adnan Husseini, the Waqf chairman, said he first learned about the construction plans through media reports and warned the police and Jerusalem city council that the plan would spark fierce opposition.

“We warned them not to do it, but there was no coordination,” he said. “They did not tell us.”

His accusation was denied by Miri Eisin, the spokeswoman for the Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert. “You don’t start a project like this without having conversations with the Waqf,” she said. “There was coordination along the way.”

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