At least 205 Palestinians and 18 Israeli officers were injured on Friday when Israeli police clashed with Palestinian worshippers at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem amid weeks-long rising tensions.
The fighting erupted when thousands protested after the Friday prayers of Ramadan, the Muslim holy month, waving the green flags of the Islamic militant group Hamas and chanting pro-Hamas slogans before dispersing peacefully.
Video footage from the scene shows Officers in riot gear firing rubber bullets and deploying stun grenades against the worshipers throwing bottles and rocks. More than 70,000 worshipers had gathered during the day at the mosque, one of Islam’s holiest sites and the location of frequent clashes between Palestinians and Israeli police who control access to compound.
The recent tensions that build up are over the planned evictions of several Palestinian families from a nearby Arab neighbourhood Sheikh Jarrah, a decade long legal battle with Israeli settlers who claim several properties as rightfully theirs. Israel's supreme court is yet to hold a hearing.
Israel captured east Jerusalem, along with the West Bank and Gaza—territories the Palestinians want for their future state—in the 1967 Mideast war. Israel annexed east Jerusalem in a move not recognized internationally and views the entire city as its capital.
"Building and expanding settlements, confiscating lands, demolishing homes and deporting Palestinians from their homes are illegal practices that perpetuate the occupation and undermine the chances of achieving a just and comprehensive peace, which is a regional and international necessity,"
- Ayman al-Safadi, Jordan's foreign minister, wrote in a tweet on Friday.
Following Friday’s clashes, U.S. officials called on Israeli and Palestinian leaders to “de-escalate tensions and bring a halt to the violence.” Iran called on the United Nations to condone Israeli police actions, arguing that "this war crime once again proved to the world the criminal nature of the illegitimate Zionist regime".
Further tensions are expected over the next few days. Sunday night is "Laylat al-Qadr" or the "Night of Destiny," the most sacred in the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Worshippers will gather for intense nighttime prayers at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City, a flashpoint site sacred to both Muslims and Jews, who refer to it as the Temple Mount.
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