The ruling coalition in Israel faced a new division, Sunday, following the decision of the United Arab List to “suspend” its support for the government, as violence continued in Al-Aqsa Mosque and its surroundings in Jerusalem, leaving 170 people injured.
The government lost its narrow majority in the Knesset (Parliament) this month as a result of the resignation of a hard-right female MP.
The ruling coalition brings together an ideologically disparate mixture of left-wing, ultra-nationalist and religious parties, in addition to the United Arab List.
The three-day-old violence in and around Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem has placed political pressure on the United Arab List and calls for its withdrawal from the ruling coalition.
And the list waved in a statement, Sunday evening, that “if the government continues its “arbitrary steps” once morest Jerusalem and its people… we will submit a collective resignation.”
The statement came hours following more than 19 Palestinians and seven Israelis were injured during clashes between the Israeli police and Palestinians, on Sunday, in and around Al-Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem, while 18 people were arrested, two days following similar clashes that left more than 150 Palestinians injured. .
The Israeli police said that “hundreds” of Palestinian demonstrators, some of them masked, “gathered stones and stored them” in preparation for their use in the clashes, prior to the start of “visits” by Jews, including settlers, to the mosque’s courtyard at specific times and conditions.
The Palestinians consider the visits of the Jews, who call the site “the Temple Mount” “breaking in”.
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society ambulance service confirmed the registration of “19 injuries during the erupting confrontations,” explaining that “five injuries were transferred to the hospital.”
In a separate incident, the Israeli police confirmed that “stones were thrown at buses in the East Jerusalem area, near the Old City.” “The buses were damaged and a number of passengers were receiving treatment, who were slightly injured,” it said in a statement.
Shaare Zedek Hospital confirmed the arrival of seven people with minor injuries, three of whom left following receiving treatment.
The Minister of Internal Security, Omer Bar-Lev, said that Israel “will deal with force once morest those who dare to use terrorism once morest Israeli citizens.”
An AFP correspondent observed that mosques in East Jerusalem had launched a call to “respond to the call of Al-Aqsa” by going to it.
The escalation at the holy site coincides with the Jewish Passover, Christian Passover and Ramadan celebrations.
From the Vatican, Pope Francis called on the occasion of Easter Sunday, to ensure “free” entry to the holy sites in Jerusalem.
“We ask for peace for Jerusalem and peace for those who love it, Christians, Jews and Muslims,” he said, calling for “mutual respect for the rights” of all parties.
On Friday, more than 150 Palestinians were wounded in the clashes that took place with the Israeli police in the courtyard of Al-Aqsa Mosque.
The police arrested more than 400 people, most of whom were later released, while the interrogation of the rest continues.
“all-out confrontation”
On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett reiterated the “full freedom” of security forces to move “in a way that guarantees the provision of security to the citizens of Israel.”
“We are trying to calm the situation on the ground and act decisively once morest the causes of violence,” Bennett added during security consultations with senior officials.
The courtyard of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, in East Jerusalem, witnesses continuous clashes between the Israeli police and Palestinian demonstrators.
And last year, East Jerusalem witnessed violent tensions that spread to the mosque’s courtyards following demonstrations once morest the threat of eviction of Palestinian families in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood by Israeli settlers.
The protests developed and led to a bloody escalation with the Gaza Strip that lasted 11 days.
Israel, which signed a peace treaty with Jordan in 1994, recognizes the kingdom’s guardianship over Islamic holy sites in Jerusalem.
On Sunday, Jordan’s King Abdullah II called on Israel to “stop all illegal and provocative measures” at Al-Aqsa Mosque, while the Jordanian Foreign Ministry blamed Israel for the “dangerous consequences” of the escalation in it.