2024-03-16 07:26:00
Since the morning of March 15, the Israeli army and police have prevented the arrival of thousands of Palestinian worshipers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque to perform the first Friday prayers of the month of Ramadan, the Saudi publication Al-Sharq Al-Awsat reported.
It is noted that restrictions also extended to the entry of medical personnel under the pretext of “repelling attempts to undermine the security situation.” The number of believers was limited to residents of East Jerusalem, Israeli Muslim citizens (48 Palestinians) and a small number of residents of the West Bank. Here’s your oath promise Netanyahu “freedom of religion”…
The police command set up an “operational headquarters” in the courtyard of the Al-Buraq wall adjacent to the Al-Aqsa Mosque. It is emphasized that the Minister of National Security was present at the scene Itamar Ben-GvirPolice Commander Yaakov Shabtai and Commander of the Israel Army Central Region Brigade Yehuda Fox.
Israeli security officials estimate that the number of worshipers on the first Friday of Ramadan might be more than a quarter of a million people, although figures vary widely. Eyewitnesses emphasize that in some years this number reached 500 thousand believers. At the same time, the Jerusalem Waqf Authority announced that the number of people attending prayer had reached 80 thousand, and accused the Israeli authorities of preventing their arrival from the West Bank. The police chief announced that their number had reached 40 thousand. Police boasted that the prayer ended “without tension or unusual incident.” It is also reported that security forces had strict orders not to allow more than 100 thousand Muslims to enter the Temple Mount, noted the publication Al-Sharq Al-Awsat.
As the publication learned from informed sources, the police and intelligence services began preparing for this day even before the start of Ramadan, tracking those whom they call “inciters” on social networks. Some were arrested, and “fabricated” news was removed from social media, including one that stated that “the occupation authorities have erected iron barriers on the passages” to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, in particular at the King Faisal, Al-Ghawanim and Al-Hadid gates, in an attempt to tighten control over the entry of believers. The police denied this news.
Witnesses reported that the Israeli army, police and intelligence units deployed significant forces near the Qalandiya checkpoints north of Jerusalem, Al-Zaytuna to the east and Bethlehem to the south, sending back thousands of believers and preventing them from reaching Al-Aqsa Mosque under the pretext of lack of necessary documents and permits. Thousands of police were also stationed in the alleys of Jerusalem’s Old City, in the vicinity of the Al-Aqsa Mosque and at its gates.
The Red Crescent Society confirmed that “occupying forces” prevented all ambulance teams from all medical facilities in Jerusalem from entering the Al-Aqsa Mosque and that “a number of elements of the occupying forces” attacked some medical teams arriving to provide services to worshipers inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque .
The publication writes that many Muslim Palestinians were outraged by numerous restrictions, including those based on age (one woman was turned away, saying that she was not yet 50 years old, which is the “permitted age”).
An elderly Palestinian (71 years old) said:
“They chased me away from the military checkpoint because I did not have a magnetic card (electronic security card) or permission to pray. At this age they ask me for permission. So where are the amenities they talked regarding in the media? Al-Aqsa is the faith and part of every Muslim’s existence, so how can they deprive us of that? This is the first year that I have been banned from entering Jerusalem during Ramadan, and I feel like I’ve been slapped in the face.”
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