Hundreds of Israelis led by far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir have stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound under police protection.
The Jerusalem governorate on Monday said Israeli forces closed intersections and streets surrounding the Old City that lead to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, which Jews refer to as the Temple Mount, in occupied East Jerusalem on the third day of the Jewish holiday of Sukkot.
Recommended Stories
It said the Israelis danced in circles and sang inside the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque during the raid, noting that 900 people entered the compound in the morning.
“We are the owners of the place in Al-Aqsa and in the prisons, and we have turned the lives of terrorist prisoners into hell,” Ben-Gvir said.
- Now Playing
Far-right Israeli Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and settlers storm Al-Aqsa Mosque
- Next
French police fire tear gas at migrants on beach
Migrant children protest after police clear beach camp in Ceuta
Jerusalem Daily: Israeli incursions on mosques during Sukkot
Northern Ireland Orange Order march: Tensions remain over planned Garvaghy Road parade
“The people of Israel are on the path to absolute victory, and today we pray in Al-Aqsa, which is the most important place for the Jewish people.”
Monday’s intrusion came as Israeli authorities forced dozens of Palestinian shopkeepers to close their businesses and residents to remain inside their homes in areas near the mosque to allow Jewish prayers during Sukkot.
“Dozens of Palestinian owners of shops, cafes and restaurants in the Cotton Merchants Market in Jerusalem’s Old City were forced to close them during the Jewish Sukkot holiday to make way for Jewish prayers in the market,” the Association for Civil Rights in Israel said in a statement.
‘Playing with fire’
Palestinian presidential spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh described the incursion as “playing with fire and a dangerous provocation to the feelings of Muslims around the world”.
He also warned that Israel was seeking to ignite a “religious war” in the region.
Since 2003, Israeli police have allowed groups of Israelis to make daily incursions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, except on Fridays and Saturdays.
Israel often imposes restrictions on Palestinian worshippers. It prevented Eid al-Fitr prayers at Al-Aqsa this year, allowing only 10,000 Palestinians from the occupied West Bank, home to 3.3 million people, into one of Islam’s holiest sites for the first Friday prayers of Ramadan.
No comments:
Post a Comment