AA / Jerusalem / Abederraouf Arnaout
Dozens of Israeli settlers invaded the Esplanade of the Mosques in al-Aqsa on Sunday, under close surveillance by the Israeli police.
Several dozen Israeli police were deployed in the Esplanade of the Mosques, before allowing the settlers to enter.
The invasion was carried out through the Mughrabi gate, the “chain” gate at the western wall of the al-Aqsa mosque.
A small number of Palestinians performed the “al-Duha” prayer in front of the “al-Qibli” mosque, uttering religious invocations and supplications.
Some worshipers shouted “Allahu Akbar”, expressing their rejection of the repeated invasions of holy sites by Israeli settlers.
Groups of Israeli settlers had called for large raids on the al-Aqsa Mosque on the occasion of the Jewish Passover holiday which began last Wednesday and continues for a week.
Eyewitnesses told Anadolu that the Israeli police prevented young Palestinians from entering the Al-Aqsa Mosque to perform the dawn prayer, before allowing settlers to invade the premises on the occasion of the Easter.
Witnesses also said that Israeli police are deployed in large numbers at the outer gates of al-Aqsa Mosque, preventing young Palestinians from advancing and asking them to return home.
According to eyewitnesses, the Israeli police told the youths that they would not allow anyone under the age of 50 to access it to perform the prayer.
Dozens of Palestinians had begun the rite of “Itikef” (spiritual withdrawal) at the “al-Qibli” mosque.
The situation in the city of Jerusalem has been tense since the beginning of last week, following a nighttime raid by the Israeli police to prevent worshipers from performing the “Itikef” rite.
These repeated incursions have caused tensions and clashes in the Palestinian territories and Arab areas in Israel, as well as rocket attacks from Lebanon, Gaza and Syria.
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