Israeli Forces Attack Palestinian Worshipers at Al-Aqsa Mosque


TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Israeli forces on Friday stormed al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem al-Quds, and attacked Palestinians who condemned settlers’ insults against Islam’s Prophet Mohammad (PBUH).

The occupying regime’s forces stormed the holy place and attacked Palestinian protesters.

Far-right Israeli settlers marched through occupied Jerusalem al-Quds on Tuesday to commemorate the regime’s seizure and subsequent occupation of East Jerusalem al-Quds in 1967.

Palestinians view the so-called “march of the flags” as provocative as Israeli settlers display their dominance over the occupied region.

During the march, settlers insulted Prophet Mohammad (PBUH), sparking anger among Palestinians who staged a protest after Friday noon prayers at al-Aqsa Mosque compound.

The protest was met by force and saw a child and a female journalist injured by rubber bullets fired by Israeli forces at the demonstrators, according to Wafa news agency.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said nine Palestinians were wounded and four others were arrested at al-Aqsa Mosque compound on Friday.

Jordan, the custodian of Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem al-Quds, condemned the Israeli attack on the Palestinian worshipers.

Jordanian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Daifallah al-Fayez said the actions of the Israeli police constitute “a flagrant violation of the sanctity of al-Aqsa Mosque and safety of worshipers”.

Weeks of Israeli harassment of Palestinians in Jerusalem al-Quds and attempts to appropriate Palestinian lands in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood was followed by the Israeli bombardment of the besieged Gaza Strip.

The Israeli aggression on Gaza, which began on May 10, killed over 250 Palestinians and wounded more than 1,900 others, before a ceasefire came into effect on May 21.

Also on Friday, Israeli forces attacked a weekly anti-settlement protest in the village of Kafr Qaddum in the occupied West Bank, using tear gas and rubber bullets against the demonstrators.

Two young men were hit with rubber bullets, while dozens of others suffered breathing difficulties due to inhaling tear gas.

Two other Palestinians were wounded by rubber bullets while scores of others suffered suffocation as a result of inhaling tear gas in the village of Beit Dajan, east of the occupied West Bank city of Nablus, when Israeli forces attacked Palestinians taking part in a weekly protest against the construction of a settlement outpost in the village.

To the south of Nablus, clashes erupted at the entrance to Beita town between Israeli forces and Palestinians calling for the removal of a settlement outpost on Sobeih Mountain, leaving five Palestinians hit with rubber bullets and 42 others suffering breathing difficulties due to inhaling tear gas used by Israeli forces, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society.

More than 600,000 Israelis live in over 230 settlements built since the 1967 Israeli occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem al-Quds.

All Israeli settlements are illegal under international law as they are built on occupied land. The United Nations Security Council has condemned Israel’s settlement activities in the occupied territories in several resolutions.