World, Middle East

Dozens of Jewish settlers storm Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa

Over 170 Jewish settlers storm Al-Aqsa Mosque, try to perform Talmudic rituals

28.12.2016 - Update : 30.12.2016
Dozens of Jewish settlers storm Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa File photo

By Anees Barghouti

JERUSALEM

Dozens of Jewish settlers on Wednesday forced their way into East Jerusalem’s flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound where they tried to perform Talmudic rituals, a Palestinian official said.

"Some 176 settlers, backed by Israeli special forces, stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound since this morning," Al-Aqsa Mosque Director Sheikh Omar al-Qiswani told Anadolu Agency.

The Jewish settlers tried to perform Talmudic rituals near the Al-Qibali mosque and the Dome of the Rock but they were prevented from doing so by Muslim worshipers and the mosque guards,” he said.

Al-Qiswani added that the Israeli police arrested one of the mosque's guards and took him to the detention center in the old city.

For Muslims, Al-Aqsa represents the world's third holiest site. Jews, for their part, refer to the area as the "Temple Mount," claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem during the 1967 Middle East War. It later annexed the city in 1980, claiming it as the capital of the Jewish state in a move never recognized by the international community.

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