Hamas calls on Palestinians to confront Israeli forces

ANKARA

Palestinian resistance group Hamas on Monday called on Palestinians to take to the streets and clash with Israeli occupation forces to avert a “real massacre”.

“What is happening at Al-Aqsa Mosque is a real massacre and war crimes,” Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri posted on his Twitter account.

“We call on all of our people to go to the streets and clash with the occupation.”

Abu Zuhri warned that Israel will face the consequences of their crimes.

Israeli police on Monday stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem and attacked the Palestinians who were on guard to prevent raids by extremist Jews.

Medical sources told Anadolu Agency that hundreds of people were injured during the Israeli incursion and 50 of them were taken to hospitals.

Extremist Jews decided to storm Al-Aqsa Mosque to celebrate the anniversary of the Six-Day War in 1967, when Israel occupied East Jerusalem, as "Jerusalem Day" according to the Hebrew calendar.

Extremist Jewish organizations had called for raids on Al-Aqsa Mosque on Sunday and Monday to mark the day.

Al-Aqsa Mosque is the world's third-holiest site for Muslims. Jews call the area the "Temple Mount," claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. It annexed the entire city in 1980, in a move never recognized by the international community.