Israel’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) announced on Monday an easement of restrictions for Palestinians wishing to enter Jerusalem and pray at Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif during the month of Ramadan.

The step is routine from Israel, but the current decision comes also on the backdrop of two US-initiated meetings, first in Aqaba, Jordan, and then in Sharm al-Sheikh, Egypt, for calming increasingly growing tensions in the West Bank and in Jerusalem during the holiday month.

According to the new measures, Palestinian women, Palestinian men over the age of 55 and children up to the age of 12 living in the West Bank will be allowed to enter Israel and Haram al-Sharif compound in Jerusalem without a permit for the Ramadan Friday prayers. Palestinian men between the age of 45-55 will be able to enter the mosque compound subject to a permit, which in turn would be subject to a security approval. In comparison, last year, Palestinian men aged 50-55 and older were allowed to enter the compound without a special permit.

Another easement announced was allowing a certain number (the exact number was not communicated) of women aged 50 and over and men over 55 living in the Gaza Strip to visit Jerusalem between Sunday and Thursday.