Thousands rush to pray at Al Aqsa mosque amid tension
HISTORIC VICTORY: Dozens of Palestinians injured in scuffles with Israeli police
JERUSALEM: Thousands of Muslim worshippers rushed to pray at Jerusalem’s Al Aqsa mosque in chaotic scenes on Thursday after Israel backed down in the face of 10 days of oftenviolent unrest and removed security measures it had installed at the sacred site.
At least 37 Palestinians were injured as Israeli security forces used sound bombs to control crowds of worshippers surging forth once the last gate Muslims are allowed to use to enter Al Aqsa was opened after a stand-off of several hours.
Israel’s removal of the security measures, including metal detectors and CCTV cameras, marked a significant climbdown by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
While Palestinians celebrated, political opponents accused him of weakness.
Netanyahu’s decision followed days of diplomatic effort by the United Nations, the involvement of President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy and pressure from countries in the region, including Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Jordan.
The dispute began after Israel installed metal detectors at Muslim entrances to Al Aqsa compound following the July 14 killing of two Israeli policemen by gunmen who had concealed weapons inside the walled plaza. The unannounced move provoked days of unrest, with violent clashes on the streets of East Jerusalem.
Israeli forces shot dead four Palestinians, and a Palestinian man stabbed and killed three Israelis in their home in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. For the past two weeks, most Muslims have refused to enter, instead praying in the streets around the Old City.
Earlier on Thursday, Muslim elders declared themselves satisfied that Israeli authorities had removed all the new security measures — mainly metal detectors and CCTV cameras — and reverted to the set-up before July 14.
“The technical report showed that all obstacles the occupation (Israel) put outside Al Aqsa mosque were removed,” said Abdel-Azeem Salhab, the head of the Waqf, the Jordanianfunded trust that oversees Jerusalem’s Muslim holy sites.
“We praise this stand in the past two weeks outside Al Aqsa and we want this stand to continue outside Al Aqsa and now inside Al Aqsa,” he said, urging worshippers to return to pray.
Palestinian political factions issued statements supporting the Waqf, which looked likely to help defuse the unrest.
Before the announcement, factions had been calling for a “day of rage” on Friday, raising concerns about another round of violence.
Jordan, which signed a peace treaty with Israel in 1994 and has been custodian of the Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem since 1924, said Israel’s removal of the extra security measures was an “essential step to calm the situation”.
Saudi Arabia said King Salman had been in contact with the United States and other powers to try to dampen the tensions and had “stressed the need for the return of calm”. He called for respect for the sanctity of the compound. Palestinian political factions were quick to highlight what they saw as a rare victory over Israel.
A spokesman for Netanyahu declined to comment, but right-wing leaders criticised the premier for what they regarded as weakness.
Netanyahu said the extra security was needed to ensure safety at the site, which is popular with tourists.
But by taking the steps to bolster security, Israel was materially changing the sensitive status quo, which has governed movement and religious practice for decades.
The dispute is about more than security devices, taking in issues of sovereignty, religious freedom, occupation and Palestinian nationalism.
Israel captured East Jerusalem, including the Old City and the holy compound, in the 1967 Middle East war. It annexed the area and declared it part of its “indivisible capital”.
This has never been recognised internationally, with the UN and others regarding East Jerusalem as occupied by Israel and maintaining that the status of the city can only be determined through negotiations between the parties.
Palestinians do not recognise Israel’s authority in East Jerusalem, which they want as the capital of a future Palestinian state, and are extremely sensitive to the presence of Israeli security forces in and around the Noble Sanctuary.