Crown Prince of Jordan Hussein bin Al-Abdullah paid a surprise visit to Jerusalem Wednesday afternoon and visited the Temple Mount. The Waqf invited the 17-year-old heir to the Hashemite Kingdom to see the state of the Mughrabi Gate in person, Israel Radio reported.

The visit was not announced publicly until the crown prince arrived at the site at around 4 p.m. Wednesday.

Israel was informed of the visit beforehand. However, it was not an official or bilateral visit and he will not be visiting any Israeli officials. The visit was to the Palestinian Authorities.

Israel has for eight years delayed rebuilding the Mughrabi Gate connecting the Western Wall Plaza to the Temple Mount due to objections from the Waqf and Muslim authorities, who claim it would damage the Muslim holy site.

A temporary wooden covered ramp has been used since 2004, when a small earthquake and winter storm caused part of the original bridge to collapse. The Mughrabi Bridge is the main entry point for non- Muslim tourists to access the Temple Mount from the Western Wall plaza, as well as for security forces entering the area in times of unrest.

Herb Keinon and Melanie Lidman contributed to this report. (© 1995- 2011, The Jerusalem Post 04/04/12)