Israeli PM says it was in the best interest of security.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday defended his decision to remove metal detectors from the entrance to a Jerusalem holy site after deadly unrest, saying it was in the best interest of security.

Israel installed metal detectors and security cameras after a July 14 attack near the Haram al-Sharif, known to Jews as the Temple Mount, in which gunmen killed two policemen.

Israeli police said the metal detectors were needed because guns were smuggled into the site and the assailants emerged from it to carry out the attack.

The move sparked Muslim protests and deadly unrest, and the government removed the detectors on Tuesday as well as the cameras.

Allies unhappy

That, however, brought fierce criticism from the far-right flank of Mr. Netanyahu’s own conservative coalition. A poll of Israeli Jews found 77% thought the move constituted “capitulation”, while even the normally pro-Netanyahu newspaper Israel Hayom attacked his handling of the crisis.

“I listen to the sensitivities of the public, I understand their feelings, I know that the decision we took is not an easy one,” he said at the start of Sunday’s cabinet meeting. “At the same time, as Prime Minister of Israel, as the one who carries the burden of Israel’s security on his shoulders, I am obliged to take decisions in a calm and considered way. I do that with a view to the big picture.”