LONDON - The Chief Rabbi of the Jewish community in the United Kingdom, Dr. Jonathan Sacks, says that no Israeli government has the right to cede sovereignty over the Temple Mount.

In a letter sent to Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert last week, Sacks said that Israel "must" retain control over the Old City of Jerusalem. He also wrote that "no government in Israel, even if it was democratically elected, has the right to relinquish the Temple Mount."

Sacks noted, however, that he refused to participate in a rally held in London to protest the division of Jerusalem, out of concern that his presence would be interpreted as political interference during an election period.

In his letter, Sacks said that Jerusalem was put into the hands of the Jewish people, "in the name of God and all of humanity," long before Christianity and Islam were born. He also highlighted the importance of retaining Jewish holy sites under Israeli control, after centuries in which they were under foreign occupation.

"Israel is more than just a state," he wrote. "It is the continuation of the story of the people of the covenant."

Israeli diplomatic sources expressed their surprise at what they termed Sacks's challenge to Israeli democracy. They also said that in all his statements regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Sacks has refrained from pointing fingers at either party, and they were therefore shocked by the sharpness of his stance on such a contentious issue.