Topline
Clashes flared once again Friday morning at a holy site in Jerusalem’s Old City when Israeli forces in full riot gear entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque to remove Palestinian youth who were hurling rocks and throwing fireworks, according to Israeli police and videos of the events, leaving more than 30 Palestinians injured as tensions continue to rise almost a year after an 11-day war between the two sides began.
Palestinian medics evacuate a person wounded in clashes between protesters and Israeli police at the ... [+]
Key Facts
In the early morning on Friday, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said “hundreds of violent rioters,” some carrying Hamas flags, began throwing stones and setting off fireworks near the mosque compound, a site viewed as sacred by Jews, Muslims and Christians.
Police—who say they waited until after prayers finished—were then “forced” to use “riot dispersal means” after the violence intensified, the ministry said, as videos show Israeli forces entering the compound and firing tear gas to remove the young protesters in a clash that lasted about an hour.
The violence left 31 Palestinians injured, including 14 hospitalized, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent, while one police officer was injured.
The violence came to a halt shortly after, though police said they were on high alert as many more Palestinians were expected to come to the mosque for prayers on Friday.
Key Background
The fighting comes after Israel’s air force and Palestinians militants traded fire on Thursday, with the Israeli military saying it responded to an airstrike from Hamas by hitting a Hamas security post in the Gaza strip. On the same day, clashes resumed at the Al-Aqsa Mosque where Israeli police said masked protesters barricaded themselves in the holy site and threw stones. Palestinians said Israeli police hit worshippers with tear gas and rubber bullets a week after clashes first started at the site at the beginning of Ramadan, leaving more than a hundred wounded. The fighting comes after a series of deadly Palestinian attacks and after Israel stepped up military operations in occupied territories in response, also killing Palestinians. The mounting tensions have raised worries about a repeat of the 11-day war between Hamas and Israel that began at the same time last year and has followed a similar trajectory to clashes thus far. Both sides have said they want to avoid war.
Surprising Fact
The Al-Aqsa Mosque, an UNESCO World Heritage Site which sits on 35 acres and is referred to by Jews as Temple Mount and by Muslims as Haram al-Sharif, has been a hotly contested territory since even before Israel annexed East Jerusalem, including the Old City, according to Al Jazeera. The Waqf Ministry of Jordan controlled the compound until the 1967 Six-Day War, after which Israel made a deal transferring control of the mosque to a trust called the Islamic Waqf, with Israeli police allowed to maintain a security presence at the site. As a part of the agreement, Jews and Christians are allowed to visit, while only Muslims can pray there. In recent years, reports of Jews violating the prayer ban have sparked Palestinian concerns that Israel may try to take control of the site.
Further Reading
Tensions Escalate As Israel And Gaza Militants Exchange Fire And Clashes Flare At Holy Site (Forbes)
Israeli police in full riot gear storm Jerusalem holy site after rock-throwing (CBS News)
Al-Aqsa Mosque: Five things you need to know (Al Jazeera)
