Israeli Forces Raid Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound in Al-Quds
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - Clashes broke out between Israeli police and a group of Palestinian worshipers after the regime’s forces stormed the holy al-Aqsa Mosque compound in the Israeli-occupied Old City of al-Quds (Jerusalem).
On Sunday morning, the Israeli troopers forced their way into the sacred Muslim site by opening its doors using wedging metal bars, furniture and other items.
In response, Palestinians pelted the Israeli forces with stones and threw blocks as they were trying to reach the mosque’s yard.
The Palestinians had reportedly placed umbrellas, used during the holy fasting month of Ramadan to provide shade to worshipers in the mosque, to slow down Israeli forces and prevent the officers from chasing them further inside the buildings.
The clashes came to an end when Israeli troopers finally closed al-Aqsa Mosque’s doors. The Israeli police said in a statement that a number of its members were wounded during the imbroglio. Six Palestinians were also arrested.
The Israeli regime continues to restrict the entrance of Palestinian worshipers into the al-Aqsa Mosque.
Nearly 90 percent of Palestinians believe that Israel is going to destroy the al-Aqsa Mosque and replace it with a temple, according to a recent poll conducted by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research.
The Tel Aviv regime has tried to change the demographic makeup of al-Quds over the past decades by constructing illegal settlements, destroying historical sites and expelling the local Palestinian population, Press TV reported.
The al-Aqsa Mosque compound is a flashpoint Islamic site, also holy to the Jews. The mosque is Islam’s third holiest site after Masjid al-Haram in Mecca and Masjid al-Nabawi in Medina.