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Eritrean mistaken for Palestinian shot dead in Israel

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Eritrean bystander shot by security guard and beaten by mob after deadly attack on Beersheba bus station.

Eritrean asylum seeker Haftom Zarhum, 29, reportedly was in Beersheba to obtain his visa [Screen grab via YouTube]

Eritrean asylum seeker Haftom Zarhum, 29, reportedly was in Beersheba to obtain his visa [Screen grab via YouTube]

by Al Jazeera

An Eritrean man has died after he was shot and beaten by a mob after he was mistaken for an attacker during a raid in southern Israel, Israeli police say.

The attack on Sunday night at a bus station in the city of Beersheba saw a Palestinian man armed with a rifle and a knife kill an Israeli soldier and wound about 10 other people.

The Palestinian attacker was killed, while a security guard shot the Eritrean bystander, identified by Israeli media as 29-year-old Haftom Zarhum, thinking he was an accomplice of the assailant.

A video circulating online (WARNING – graphic footage) shows that a mob also beat Zarhum, who later died in hospital.

At least one Israeli soldier was filmed kicking Zarhum in the head as he lay bleeding on the floor of the terminal. Another man lifted a bench and dropped it on Zarhum’s head as others tried to protect him by placing a bar stool over his body.

Speaking to Al Jazeera, Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld confirmed Zarhum was “misidentified”.

“The man was hit by bystanders and individual civilians who were in the area. Police are looking into it now and have obtained the CCTV footage of the incident.”

The Israeli IBA network posted footage of the attack, purportedly recorded by a surveillance camera.

Rosenfeld said the “Palestinian attacker stabbed a soldier and stole his M-16 rifle,” opening fire on the crowd at the bus terminal. The soldier died in hospital.

The attacker was named by police as Muhand Alukabi, 21, a resident of Hura in the Negev.

Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, called the attack a “natural response” and Islamic Jihad, another Palestinian group, said it was a “normal answer to Israeli crimes”.

Sunday’s attack brings the total number of people killed in the violence that erupted at the beginning of the month to 52: 44 Palestinians and eight Israelis.

The incident comes just a day after five Palestinians were shot dead during alleged stabbing attacks – three of them in Hebron in the occupied West Bank. Palestinians have disputed the police version of events in at least some of the cases.

Triggered by Israeli incursions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound last month, violence and protests against Israel’s occupation have increased in frequency across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip.

Diplomatic moves to halt the more than two weeks of unrelenting violence has gained steam, with US Secretary of State John Kerry saying he plans to meet both the Israeli and Palestinian leaders in the coming days.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, meanwhile, rejected an idea from France that would see international observers sent to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.

Israeli forces have responded with a crackdown on protesters, using tear gas, stun grenades, rubber-coated steel bullets and live ammunition.

Checkpoints have been set up in the occupied East Jerusalem, where some of the attackers have come from, and about 300 soldiers on Sunday began reinforcing the police force.

African asylum seekers in Israel have long been the target of political incitement and discriminatory legislation.

In July, an Israeli court approved the deportation of refugees to countries such as Rwanda and Uganda, and gave a stamp of approval to the indefinite detention of asylum seekers who refuse deportation.

Israeli Culture Minister Miri Regev, a member of Netanyahu’s hardline Likud party, has in the past called African asylum seekers a “cancer in Israel’s body”.

Residences and schools servicing asylum seekers have also been targeted in attacks, including with firebombs, in recent years.

Palestinians killed after alleged Hebron stabbings

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Two Palestinians killed by Israeli forces in occupied West Bank, one in East Jerusalem, after alleged stabbings.

Video footage showed the moment after an Israeli settler shot dead a Palestinian man in Hebron [YouTube]

Video footage showed the moment after an Israeli settler shot dead a Palestinian man in Hebron [YouTube]

by Al Jazeera

Three Palestinians have been shot dead in separate attacks after they allegedly tried to stab Israelis in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, the latest incidents in a wave of violence that has escalated this month.

In Hebron, a Jewish settler killed a Palestinian man early on Saturday after the Palestinian allegedly tried to stab him. Israeli police said the man was shot dead before he could harm the Israeli.

Witnesses disputed the Israeli police version of the event, saying the incident looked more like an attack by the settler on the Palestinian.

Video circulated by Palestinian activists showed a young man wearing a kippa brandishing a pistol as shots rang out before Israeli soldiers moved in to pull him away from a body lying on the ground.

Palestinian security sources identified the Palestinian as 18-year-old Fadel al-Kawatsmi.

In the second attack, a Palestinian woman was shot dead by Israeli forces after she allegedly attempted to stab a female soldier guarding an illegal Jewish settlement in Hebron.

The soldier suffered minor injuries to her hand, according to an Israeli police spokesperson.

Palestinian media said her assailant was aged 16.

Israeli police sealed off the city by blocking road access after violent clashes broke out between Palestinian protesters and Israeli forces following the killings.

In East Jerusalem, a Palestinian allegedly tried to stab a soldier at a checkpoint in East Talpiot but was shot dead by other soldiers.

Police said the boy was a 16-year-old from nearby Jabel Mukaber, the same neighbourhood that was home to three Palestinians who were killed earlier this week after alleged attacks against Israelis.

Amid tit-for-tat attacks between Israelis and Palestinians, the ongoing streak of violence has left dead at least 42 Palestinians – including suspected attackers, as well as unarmed protesters and bystanders – and seven Israelis.

Israeli security forces have deployed massively in Jerusalem and on Wednesday began setting up checkpoints in parts of East Jerusalem, including Jabel Mukaber. But it has failed to stop the violence.

The mounting death toll has prompted speculation about a new Palestinian intifada, or uprising, like those of 1987-93 and 2000-2005, when thousands were killed in near-daily violence.

Palestinian plea rejected

Saturday’s killings came a day after Israel rejected a Palestinian plea to the United Nations for an international force to police the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem.

Tensions boiled over into violence earlier this month as Israeli incursions into the al-Aqsa complex – the third holiest site in Islam – gave way to protests and clashes that have consumed much of the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip.

“An international presence on the Temple Mount [al-Aqsa Mosque compound] would violate the status quo of the last several decades,” Israeli ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said on Friday.

“Israel does not think international intervention [in] the Temple Mount would be helpful or contribute to stability,” Danon added.

Israel bans men under 40 entering Al-Aqsa Mosque

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A Palestinian man prays outside the Old City in Jerusalem due to Al-Aqsa restrictions, October 9, 2015. (AFP/File)

A Palestinian man prays outside the Old City in Jerusalem due to Al-Aqsa restrictions, October 9, 2015. (AFP/File)

by Ma’an News Agency

Israeli police have imposed age restrictions at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound on Friday as a preventative security measure, with only Palestinian men over 40 allowed to enter for prayers.

Israeli police spokesperson Micky Rosenfeld said security measures are in place across Israel and Jerusalem.

There were no reports of restrictions on women.

Meanwhile, around 130 worshipers from Gaza, all over the age of 60, prayed at the holy site early Friday in a coordinated weekly visit.

The flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound has been the site of clashes for weeks, with Israeli forces repeatedly storming the holy site to clear way for Jewish worshipers during a series of Jewish holidays in September.

Palestinians fear Israel is seeking to change rules governing the site, where Jews are allowed to visit, but not pray to avoid provoking tensions.

In early October, Israeli police took the unprecedented measure of banning Palestinians from East Jerusalem’s Old City for 48 hours following two stabbing attacks in which two Israelis were killed.

At least 32 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in the West Bank and 12 in the Gaza Strip since Oct. 1.

Seven Israelis have been killed in the same time period in Palestinian attacks.

A new low: Israeli police officer puts pork chop on dying Palestinian man’s face

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A pork chop was placed on the dying man's face while the paramedics were awaiting an ambulance near Hebron. Photo: Facebook

A pork chop was placed on the dying man’s face while the paramedics were awaiting an ambulance near Hebron. Photo: Facebook

by Sam Matthew, Daily Mail

This is the moment it was claimed a pork chop was placed on the face of a dying Palestinian man.

He had been gunned down after allegedly stabbing an Israeli police officer in the settlement of Kiryat Arba, near Hebron.

In 12 days of bloodshed four Israelis and 26 Palestinians have been killed in Jerusalem, the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Gaza and in Israeli cities. The death toll is said to include eight children.

The violence has been stirred in part by Muslim anger over increasing Jewish visits to the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem.

Footage, which is now circulating on social media, shows a man, said to be an Israeli settler, approaching paramedics claiming to be clutching pork meat.

He then places the substance on the wounded man’s face and body.

It has not been confirmed that the meat was pork and in the short clip posted on YouTube it appears to look more like raw chicken.

But both Muslims and Jewish people are forbidden to eat pork, which is considered to be unclean.

Paramedics were lifting the wounded man into the waiting ambulance when he was targetted.

They do not stop to remove the flesh, as a crowd gathers around the man, who was said to have later died in hospital of his injuries.

The clip has been viewed more than 24,500 times on YouTube.

The act was later praised by right-wing activists, according to the International Business Times.

‘If this could prevent terror attacks, then we are definitely talking about the idea of the year,’ they reported that Itamar Ben Gvir said.

India will support Palestine cause, engage with Israel: Pranab Mukherjee

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India Palestine Israel

Amman: India will continue to extend unwavering support for separate statehood for Palestine while also engaging with Israel to forge an independent and long-standing bilateral relationship, President Pranab Mukherjee said here on Sunday.

The president also lauded Jordan’s humanitarian support in sheltering 1.4 million Syrians, called for a concerted global action for a peaceful resolution of conflict in the troubled country, while also pushing its own case in forging a UN treaty on countering terrorism.

These were the gist of the visiting president’s messages during his meetings with the Jordanian leadership on the second day of his visit here, and at a speech he delivered at the University of Jordan, which conferred a doctorate on him in political science.

“India supports a negotiated solution resulting in a sovereign, independent, viable and united State of Palestine, with East Jerusalem as its capital, living within secure and recognized borders,” the president said at the university.

“Our bilateral relations with Israel are independent of our relations with Palestine,” he said.

“India has played a proactive role in garnering support for this cause in all multilateral fora. We have called upon both sides to exercise restraint and work towards a comprehensive resolution of the Palestinian issue.”

Jordan is the only country in the Arab world, besides Egypt, which has a peace agreement with Israel.

The president also quoted Mahatma Gandhi, as drawn from a book written by Queen Noor: “‘Palestine belongs to the Arabs in the same sense that England belongs to the English and France to the French’.”

The Jordanian side was equally candid and said it saw Israel resorting to “state terrorism” against the people of Palestine, as clashes between the two sides continued unabated. This was also the text of a resolution that was passed by the Jordanian Parliament on Saturday, accusing Israelis of “sapping the rights” of Palestinians.

President Mukherjee, who earlier in the day opened a street, named after Mahatma Gandhi here, continued his engagements with the Jordanian leadership, during which he also took up the issue of ending conflict in Syria, while supporting Amman’s endeavours.

Jordan has a population of 6.5 million and another 1.5 million — or 25 percent — have taken shelter in the country.

The Indian side said it strongly endorsed the June 2012 resolution of the Action Group for Syria that met at the UN office in Switzerland — called the Geneva-I Communique — that not only wanted an end to further military conflict, but also rapid steps for a credible political agreement, involving the people.

About the increasing Russian involvement in Syria, Anil Wadhwa, secretary, east in India’s foreign ministry said there was major distinction and Moscow was primarily seeking to curtail the advancement of the extremist group Islamic State in Syria.

Since September 30, Russia has been carrying out airstrikes against certain positions of Islamic State which has been criticised by the US as being directed at anti-government rebels.

The talks between the Jordanian and Indian sides also veered around terrorism — of which the South Asian country has been a victim.

India pushed for a total compliance of United Nations Security Council Resolution number 1,353 of 2011 and the UN Global Counter Terrorism Strategy adopted in 2006, as also for the early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism, that has been pending for over a decade.

President Mukherjee himself pushed for this convention strongly and said it will serve to put a curb against state-sponsored terrorism in the most effective manner, by getting countries to take steps that will not only suppress such acts, but also punish its perpetrators, abettors, financiers, facilitators and collaborators.

During his engagements here, the Indian side and the Jordanian sides signed a number of pacts, ranging from cooperation in maritime transport to information technology, besides some 10 in the field of education between the Jawaharlal University, Jamia Millia Islamiyya, University of Delhi and IIT-Kharagpur, with their Jordanian counterparts.

(IANS)

Israeli gunfire injures roughly 500 Palestinians during West Bank clashes

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A Palestinian man is carried into an ambulance after he was injured during clashes with Israeli security forces on October 6, 2015 in the West Bank city of Nablus. (AFP/Jaafar Ashtiyeh)

A Palestinian man is carried into an ambulance after he was injured during clashes with Israeli security forces on October 6, 2015 in the West Bank city of Nablus. (AFP/Jaafar Ashtiyeh)

by Andolu Ajansi

Hundreds of Palestinians have been injured by Israeli gunfire – and two Palestinian youths were killed – over the past three days in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem amid ongoing clashes with Israeli security forces.

According to the Palestinian Red Crescent, at least 500 Palestinians have been injured in clashes initially triggered by recent violence at East Jerusalem’s flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, to which the Israeli authorities continue to restrict access to Palestinian Muslim worshipers.

“Since Oct. 3, at least 500 Palestinians have been injured in clashes with Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem,” the Palestinian Red Crescent said in statement. “Forty-one Palestinians have been injured by live ammunition, 134 by rubber bullets and 307 by excessive teargas, while 18 others were beaten.”

The organization went on to say it had documented at least 42 injuries by Israeli gunfire on Monday alone.

“Five Palestinians were injured by live ammunition and eight by rubber bullets on Monday, while 26 suffered excessive teargas inhalation,” the Red Crescent said.

On Sunday, Abd al-Rahman Obaid Allah, a 13-year-old Palestinian child, was killed by Israeli gunfire in the West Bank city of Bethlehem.

According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, the boy was shot in the chest by an Israeli sniper.

A second Palestinian youth, 18 years old, was also reportedly killed by Israeli gunfire on the same day.

Tensions in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem have been exacerbated by the killing last week of two Jewish settlers near the Jewish-only Itamar Settlement near the West Bank city of Nablus.

Over the past three days, several violent clashes have erupted between Palestinian youths and Israeli troops in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Palestinian flag raised at UN for first time

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Flag hoisted in New York in a historic step, despite prior condemnation from Israel and the US.

The flag was raised in the rose garden after President Abbas delivered a speech to the UN General Assembly [Brian Chacon/Al Jazeera]

The flag was raised in the rose garden after President Abbas delivered a speech to the UN General Assembly [Brian Chacon/Al Jazeera]

by Al Jazeera

The Palestinian flag has for the first time been raised at the United Nations following an address delivered by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to the UN General Assembly.

The flag was raised in the rose garden at 1:00pm local time (6:00pm GMT) on Wednesday as a large crowd of diplomats and reporters watched on.

Speaking to the crowd, Abbas dedicated the ceremony to “the martyrs, the prisoners and the wounded, and to those who gave their lives while trying to raise this flag”.

Hundreds of Palestinians assembled in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah, where they watched the flag-raising on a large screen set up in Yasser Arafat Square.

“The mood is festive,” reported Al Jazeera’s Imtiaz Tyab, adding that “families sang along to nationalistic songs and waved the Palestinian flag”.

Having been strongly criticised by Israel, the move was also opposed by the United States.

Palestinians celebrated in the West Bank city of Ramallah as the Palestinian flag was raised at the United Nations for the first time in history [EPA]

In an op-ed published at the Huffington Post, Abbas called the flag-raising a “moment of hope” and called on the international community to recognise “the independence of the state of Palestine, peacefully resolving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict”.

Speaking to Al Jazeera, Palestine Liberation Organisation Central Council member Mustafa Barghouti described the move as “an important symbolic step”.

“In essence, it will honour the many Palestinians who were killed by Israel while trying to raise that flag in the occupied Palestinian territories,” he said earlier in the day.

The General Assembly approved the resolution to raise the flag with an overwhelming majority voting in favour of it on September 10.

The motion passed with 119 votes in favour, while 45 countries abstained and eight voted against, among them Israel, the US and Australia.

But Barghouti also called on the Palestinian leadership to take several steps in order to end the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip.

Barghouti said the PA should “declare the end of negotiations with Israel because the negotiations have dragged on forever”, arguing that Israel has used the peace process as a smokescreen to expand its settlements in the occupied territory in order to “end the idea of a Palestinian state”.

After cancelling the Oslo Accords and terminating security cooperation with the Israeli military, the PLO member said that the Palestinian leadership should “support popular resistance” and “encourage a world embargo against Israel”.

In 2012, the UNGA recognised Palestine as a “non-member observer state”, a position also held by the Vatican. That followed a failed push for full member state status a year earlier.

Tholfikar Swairjo, the Gaza-based spokesman of the leftist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, said that “anything that shows the world that we exist and that we’re present” is a “positive development”.

But focusing solely on using only diplomatic tools to achieve statehood “will result only in more ink on paper”, Swairjo told Al Jazeera. “The struggle for a democratic, independent and secular Palestine will continue on the ground against the Zionist project”.

Palestinians watch PA President Mahmoud Abbas’ speech to the UNGA on a large screen in East Jerusalem, the site of several clashes between Palestinians and Israeli forces in recent weeks [EPA]

Senior Hamas leader Ghazi al-Hamad said the flag-raising is “a positive step”, but added that “it’s not enough”.

The Palestinian leadership in the West Bank has focused too much on “symbolic acts”, Hamad told Al Jazeera, adding that only with unity between the West Bank and Gaza can Palestinians “confront the Israeli occupation and establish an independent Palestinian state”.

Hamas also called for Abbas to call off all agreements with Israel during his UNGA speech on Wednesday.

Hamad said that Palestinians were in a “dire situation” as Israeli settlements continue to rapidly expand and tensions soar at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East Jerusalem, where clashes between Palestinian worshippers and Israeli forces have occurred on a near-daily basis in recent weeks.

Following the UNGA’s resolution to raise the flag earlier this month, Israel’s permanent representative to the UN, Ron Prosor, condemned the move as “a blatant attempt to hijack the UN”, calling for the resumption of direct negotiations between the PA and Israel.

Israeli troops clash with Palestinians at al-Aqsa

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Soldiers storm the mosque compound and fight with Muslim worshippers who have barricaded themselves inside.

al-aqsa

by Al Jazeera

Clashes have erupted for a second day in a row in occupied Jerusalem  after Israeli security forces stormed al-Aqsa Mosque compound and fought with Palestinian worshippers.

Witnesses on the ground told Al Jazeera that the Israeli police entered the mosque shortly before 7am local time (04:00 GMT) on Monday.

Sources told Al Jazeera the officers used al-Maghareba gate to enter the compound.

They reportedly fought with the worshippers, who have barricaded themselves at the mosque.

Sources said at least 15 Palestinians were injured.

Al Jazeera’s Imtiaz Tyab, reporting from occupied East Jerusalem, said clashes continued and tensions “are high” as far-right Jewish groups prepare to enter the mosque compound.

He said several police officers were spotted at the roof of the mosque.

He quoted witnesses as saying that the police fired the stun grenades through windows at a small number of worshippers, and used metal barricades to shield themselves as they approached the mosque’s main gate.

For their part, the worshippers threw stones and hurled fire crackers at the police, the witnesses said.

“The confrontations are relatively minor but they are ongoing,” Al Jazeera’s Tyab said.

The fresh violence occurred on the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, which began on Sunday evening. During the week-long holiday, many Jews visit Jerusalem.

According to a 50-year long agreement, Jews and people of other religions are allowed to enter the compound between 7:30am and 11:30am local time, but are not allowed to pray.

Palestinian worshippers, however, said that far-right Jews have been provoking them by praying, thus violating the agreement.

Palestinian woman shot, left to bleed by Israeli soldiers

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An image published by Youth Against Settlements shows Hadil Hashlamoun surrounded by Israeli soldiers at a checkpoint in Hebron.

An image published by Youth Against Settlements shows Hadil Hashlamoun surrounded by Israeli soldiers at a checkpoint in Hebron.

by Ali Abunimah, The Electronic Intifada

This video posted by the news agency PalMedia shows a young Palestinian woman left to bleed on a sidewalk in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron after she was shot by Israeli soldiers.

Instead of being given immediate medical treatment, the video shows her being pulled roughly out of the frame of the camera, her scarf coming off as her head drags on the ground.

Israeli settlers and soldiers can be seen standing around, and in some cases smiling and laughing in the background.

Wattan TV reported that the young woman was left to bleed for more than 30 minutes.

In a separate incident, a Palestinian man was also killed overnight by Israeli forces near Hebron.

Local sources told Ma’an News Agency that Diyaa Abdulhalim Talahmah, 21, was killed by the army during a raid in the village of Khursa.

Israel has claimed he tried to throw a Molotov cocktail at its soldiers.

These shootings come just days after Israel loosened even further its already lax permission to its forces to use live ammunition against Palestinians.

Checkpoint shooting

Wattan TV named the young woman in the video as 18-year-old Hadil Hashlamoun.

The Israeli army claimed that she was shot after she tried to stab a soldier, the Tel Aviv newspaper Haaretzreported. But evidence casts serious doubt on this.

An Israeli army spokesperson said that the incident had occurred around 8am at the so-called Container Checkpoint near Shuhada Street, Ma’an News Agency reported.

The spokesperson said the woman approached the checkpoint in order to carry out the attack and Israeli forces responded with gunfire.

The army said that the young woman was treated on site by Israeli medics and then taken to hospital.

Her father, Saleh Hashlamoun, told Wattan TV that his daughter had been hit in the abdomen several times and was in serious but stable condition at Shaare Tzedek hospital in Jerusalem.

No weapon

The Hebron-based group Youth Against Settlements published several photos on its Facebook page that it says show the young woman immediately before and after the shooting.

The photos show a person dressed in a long black dress and headcovering, carrying a brief case. In none of the images is she holding any sort of weapon.

Several Israeli personnel are pointing weapons at her.

Youth Against Settlements suggests the photo sequence shows that Hashlamoun tried to leave the checkpoint before she was shot.

An image published by Youth Against Settlements shows Hadil Hashlamoun lying injured.

Other photos show the person lying on the ground with at least one bullet wound, the same brief case visible near her.

No Israeli soldiers were injured and the army did not release photographs of a knife, as they have done on several recent occasions, Ma’an notes.

Additional photos show the scene of the shooting, including blood on the ground and bullet holes in a metal door, after the victim was removed.

Unverified claims

While Palestinians undoubtedly have an internationally recognized right to resist Israeli military occupation, the unverified claims of the army should not be taken for granted as accurate.

Similar claims have habitually turned out to be false when independent evidence has been available.

In July, a video revealed that 17-year-old Muhammad Ali al-Kasbeh was shot dead by Israeli colonel Yisrael Shomer as he ran away, near Ramallah.

This falsified the army’s version that the Israeli had been in imminent danger when he fired.

Israeli human rights group B’Tselem warned that the high-level backing Shomer received would only reinforce an “unlawful message” to occupation soldiers that they are “allowed and even encouraged to shoot to kill a Palestinian stonethrower, even if he’s running away and does not constitute a danger.”

In December 2012, Israeli Border Police officer Nofar Mizrahi claimed she shot dead 17-year-old Muhammad al-Salaymeh at a checkpoint in Hebron as the teen held a pistol to another soldier’s temple.

A video proved Mizrahi’s account to be a lie.

In May 2014, video caught Israeli soldiers shooting dead two teens in the West Bank village of Beitunia at long distance and in cold blood.

In July 2014, Israeli police spread false rumors that 16-year-old Muhammad Abu Khudair had been murdered by his family in an “honor killing” for being gay.

Police later arrested several Israeli Jews in the abduction and burning to death of the youth, which occurred at a time of intense anti-Palestinian incitement in Jerusalem.

The systematic impunity Israel affords its occupation personnel and settlers means that Israeli claims are almost never seriously investigated and Palestinians have no recourse for protection or justice.

Israeli police storm Al-Aqsa Mosque for a third day

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Clashes erupt after Israeli police raid mosque’s courtyards to support tours for Jewish activists.

Israeli police storm Al-Aqsa Mosque

by Al Jazeera

Palestinians and Israeli forces have clashed at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque for a third straight day, as Israeli forces were seen on the roof of the holy site.

Suleiman Ahmad, the president of Jerusalem’s Affairs Department, who was at the scene, told Al Jazeera that at least 36 Palestinians were injured in the clashes early on Tuesday.

“They have placed snipers on the rooftops and are using rubber bullets,” Ahmad said.

The site of the mosque is revered as holy by Jews and Muslims and is a frequent flashpoint of violence.

Palestinians inside Al-Aqsa threw stones and fireworks at the Israeli forces and set up barricades to prevent them from closing the entrance to the mosque.

The police forces eventually closed the doors to the mosque with the Palestinians still inside.

Al-Aqsa courtyard tours

Israeli police were trying to allow Jewish activists to tour the courtyards of the mosque, which in the past has stirred angry reactions from Palestinians who fear Israel may change the rules for visiting the Al-Aqsa compound.

Yousef Mukhaimar, the head of the Al-Aqsa worshiper movement, Murabitoun, told Al Jazeera that Muslim Palestinians were “prohibited from entering the mosque to pray, while Israeli settlers are allowed to enter the mosque and roam around freely under police protection”.

“Wide areas of the mosque carpeting have been burnt as a result of the Israeli police firing bombs, bullets and tear gas canisters inside the mosque compound,” Mukhaimar said.

“Netanyahu’s strategy is fulfilling his promises to his right-wing and extremist supporters to eventually demolish Al-Aqsa and build their alleged temple in its place.”

Azzam Khatib, director of endowments and Al-Aqsa Mosque affairs, told Al Jazeera that the violence at the site was worse than in previous days.

“Because of the Palestinians who were present inside the mosque, Israeli police faced trouble storming it around 7:30am this morning. Police used tear gas, rubber bullets, and stun grenades,” Khatib said.

“There was a small fire caused by the stun grenades; all who are present here have extinguished the fire, which took place at the entrance of the mosque.”

Abdel Aziz al-Abasi, another Mourabitoun member, said Israeli police have sealed off the compound.

“The bigger problem here is that the Israelis are trying to establish a precedent by dividing Al-Aqsa Mosque compound into sections and time segments, so they can give Israeli settlers access to our mosque,” Abasi told Al Jazeera.

“We will never agree to such plan because it is obvious that the Israelis are trying to take it over piecemeal.”

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