JERUSALEM – Israeli police attacked dozens of worshippers in Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque compound earlier than daybreak on Wednesday, witnesses mentioned, in what Israeli police mentioned was a response to rioting.
The Palestinian Red Crescent reported accidents however didn’t elaborate on how many individuals had been harm. It mentioned in a press release that Israeli forces had been stopping its medics from reaching the mosque.
“I was sitting on a chair reciting (Qur’an),” an aged girl advised Reuters whereas sitting outdoors the mosque, struggling to catch her breath. “They hurled stun grenades, one of them hit my chest,” she mentioned as she started to cry.
Israeli police mentioned in a press release that it was compelled to enter the compound after “masked agitators” locked themselves contained in the mosque with fireworks, sticks and stones.
“When the police entered, stones were thrown at them and fireworks were fired from inside the mosque by a large group of agitators,” the assertion mentioned, including {that a} police officer was wounded within the leg.
Violence within the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem has surged over the previous yr and there’s concern that tensions might escalate this month, when the Muslim holy month of Ramadan coincides with Judaism’s Passover and Christian Easter.
Friction on the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, recognized to Jews because the Temple Mount, has set off violence in recent times.
Palestinian teams condemned Israel’s assaults on worshippers, which they described as a criminal offense.
“We warn the occupation against crossing red lines at holy sites, which will lead to a big explosion,” mentioned Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesperson for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Videos circulating on social media, which Reuters couldn’t instantly confirm, confirmed fireworks going off and police beating folks contained in the mosque. —Reuters
Source: www.gmanetwork.com
