ISLAMABAD – A group of Israeli settlers, escorted by military forces, havestormed the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East Jerusalem al-Quds.The settlers forcefully entered the mosque on Wednesday morning, an actionwhich resulted in clashes with Muslim worshippers.
Following the incident, General Director of the Islamic Awqaf and al-AqsaAffairs Sheikh Azzam al-Khatib voiced concerns over the incident, notingthat Israeli authorities are responsible for the clashes.
The Israeli security forces regularly allow extremists to enter thecompound under police protection, while restricting Palestinian access.
Under a 1967 deal between Israel and Jordan, the compound’s custodian,non-Muslim worship is prohibited at the site.
In defiance of the agreement, the regime in Tel Aviv regularly allowsIsraeli settlers and extremists to enter the site and carry out religiousrituals — often under armed guard.
The al-Aqsa Mosque compound is a flashpoint Islamic site, which is alsoholy to the Jews. The mosque is Islam’s third holiest site after Mecca andMedina in Saudi Arabia.
Palestinian killed by Israeli forces in Jenin raid
A Palestinian was killed during clashes with Israeli troops late onWednesday in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin.
The Palestinian Health Ministry identified the slain Palestinian as22-year-old Ahmed Jarrar.
Eyewitnesses said that several people were also injured in the raids whichlasted until the early hours of Thursday.
Israeli media reports claimed that Jarrar had links to the last weekshooting incident in the West Bank in which a rabbi was killed.
On January 9, Israel ordered a sweeping crackdown in the West Bank afterthe shooting death of the Israeli rabbi.
Israeli sources said Raziel Shevah, 35, was killed by shots fired from apassing vehicle near the Israeli settlement of Havat Gilad in the northernWest Bank.
Tel Aviv often uses such incidents as pretexts to intensify its alreadydraconian restrictive measures against the Palestinians residing in theterritory.
Tensions have been high in the region since US President Donald Trumprecognized Jerusalem al-Quds as the “capital” of Israel and announced thathe was planning to relocate the American embassy from Tel Aviv to the holycity.