An Israeli government agency decided today to abandon excavations and planned construction near Jerusalem's al-Aqsa mosque that sparked Muslim protests, an Israeli newspaper reported.
The Haaretznewspaper reported that the Jewish Quarter Development Co, controlled by the Construction and Housing Ministry, informed the city of Jerusalem of the decision to halt the work.
A spokesman for the city of Jerusalem said he was unaware of any decision.
Israel had started an archaeological excavation about 50 metres from the religious compound known to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif and to Jews as Temple Mount.
The excavation work was to pave the way for a walkway meant to replace an existing ramp leading up to the compound. Israeli authorities had announced yesterday they would reconsider planned construction work near al-Aqsa in response to Muslim protests but would continue to search for ancient artefacts in the area.
The ramp to the complex, the site of two destroyed biblical Jewish temples and where the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa mosque stand, was deemed unsafe after it was damaged by a snowstorm and earthquake in 2004.
Arab states had asked Israel to halt the work, charging it could undermine the foundations of the mosque. Israel said the holy places would not be harmed.