Egyptian minister is attacked by furious Palestinian mob during prayers in mosque

Ahmed Maher, Egypt's Foreign Minister, was attacked and beaten by a Palestinian mob as he prayed at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque during a diplomatic mission aimed at reviving the Middle East peace process.

About 100 worshippers set on Mr Maher, who was ending an official visit to Israel, and started to beat him as he finished praying at the third-holiest shrine in Islam.

Some threw shoes, a traditional gesture of contempt, calling the minister a traitor and shouting: "Go back to Sharon! You are collaborators!" Sheikh Ziad Afameh, who commands the Al-Aqsa guards, told The Independent the Foreign Minister fell and lost consciousness.

Some witnesses said he was gasping for breath and was heard saying, "I'm going to choke, I'm going to choke" as the crowd engulfed him. Sheikh Afameh said: "We tried, but we couldn't reach him. The mob punched our guards too. One of them fainted."

Mr Maher quickly regained consciousness and managed to walk to an ambulance. At first, he said he did not need to go to hospital, but agreed to be checked at the Hadassah Medical Centre. The mayhem embarrassed Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Although the Muslims control the mosque compound, known by Jews as the Temple Mount and by Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary, the Old City is under Israeli rule. Since the 1967 war, they have been responsible for security. Ahmad Qureia, the Palestinian Prime Minister, condemned the attack as "irresponsible" and promised to bring the culprits to justice.

He cannot afford to alienate Egypt, the biggest Arab state, which has been working assiduously to coax Israelis and Palestinians back to the negotiating table. He said: "Egypt has always supported the Palestinian cause. It is trying to alleviate Palestinian suffering." Mohammed Duma, the head of Al-Aqsa's alms-distribution committee, said: "This was a shameful act. I am very angry that it happened."

Three Palestinians were killed early today when 40 Israeli tanks and armoured vehicles entered the Rafah refugee camp on the Gaza-Egypt border.

The army said the raid, in which 20 people were wounded by Israeli gunfire, was aimed at finding weapons smuggling tunnels and that troops had fired at and hit four people trying to lay explosive devices near the soldiers.

Security at the mosque was surprisingly lax. By agreement between Israel and the Muslim authorities, Israeli police did not accompany Mr Maher on the mount, though they rushed in to rescue him as soon as the mob struck.

Sheikh Afameh said he had only 12 guards on duty. He said Mr Maher arrived two hours later than expected after extended talks with Ariel Sharon, the Prime Minister, and his Foreign Minister, Silvan Shalom. Mr Maher entered by the Moors Gate, which is normally used by non-Muslim visitors. No one was there to greet him and the guards had not been reinforced.

Before going to the mosque, Mr Maher had persuaded Mr Sharon to reciprocate if the Palestinian militias agreed to a ceasefire. "We will respond to quiet with quiet," a senior official in Mr Sharon's office said. He did not repeat the mantra that the Palestinians must first "dismantle the terrorist infrastructure".

Egypt, one of only two Arab states to maintain full diplomatic relations with Israel, has been mediating at the diplomatic and security levels to get the international "road-map" back on course. Although Mr Maher was not scheduled to meet Palestinian leaders on this trip, Egypt's intelligence chief, Omar Suleiman, is expected to visit the West Bank next week to push the militias for a ceasefire. So far, the more radical groups have been ready to stop attacks inside Israel, but not against soldiers or settlers in the occupied territories.

Mr Maher was confident after meeting Mr Shalom that a truce could be achieved and that the road-map could be revived. He told reporters: "Let's start this road, which will lead us to a solution and to peace between the Palestinians and the Israelis, which will be beneficial to the whole region.

"I come out from here encouraged, but the encouragement needs to be followed up by actions from both sides as soon as possible."