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Jerusalem: Clashes erupt at al-Aqsa mosque Jerusalem: Clashes erupt at al-Aqsa mosque
(about 1 hour later)
Watch clashes erupt at Jerusalem holy siteWatch clashes erupt at Jerusalem holy site
Watch clashes erupt at Jerusalem holy siteWatch clashes erupt at Jerusalem holy site
Israeli police have clashed with dozens of Palestinian worshippers at Jerusalem's contested holy site. Israeli police have clashed with Palestinian worshippers at al-Aqsa mosque in occupied East Jerusalem.
Police say they conducted a pre-dawn raid after what they called "agitators" with fireworks, sticks and stones shut themselves inside the al-Aqsa mosque. Police said 350 people were arrested in a pre-dawn raid after what they called "agitators" with fireworks, sticks and stones shut themselves inside.
Palestinians say 14 people were hurt after the police used stun grenades and rubber bullets to clear out the group. Palestinians said stun grenades and rubber bullets were used to clear out the group and that 14 people were hurt.
At least nine rockets were later fired from the Gaza Strip into Israel, with air alert sirens sounding near Sderot. Militants in the Gaza Strip later fired nine rockets at Israel and its military carried out air strikes in response.
The Israeli army said five rockets were intercepted, and another four "landed in open areas". The latest violence comes just ahead of an overlap between the Islamic holy month of Ramadan and the Jewish Passover holiday.
No group has so far claimed responsibility - but it is believed that the militant group Hamas approved the firing. The al-Aqsa mosque, the third holiest site in Islam, is located on a hilltop complex known by Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif (the Noble Sanctuary) and by Jews as the Temple Mount. Jews revere it as the location of two Biblical Temples and it is the holiest site in Judaism.
Hamas' deputy head Saleh Al-Arouri warned that "attacking Islamic sanctities will have a great price and we will burn the ground under their [Israeli] feet". On Tuesday, Palestinians barricaded themselves in the mosque after the evening Ramadan prayer, amid reports that Jewish extremists wanted to try to sacrifice a Passover goat at the site - as Jews did in Biblical times before the Romans destroyed their temple there.
The Israeli military later said its war planes targeted militant sites. Israeli police said in a statement that "several law-breaking youths and masked agitators" fortified the mosque "in order to disrupt public order and desecrate the mosque".
The clashes in Israeli-annexed East Jerusalem started after a number of Palestinian worshippers had barricaded themselves in the mosque after Ramadan prayers. "After many and prolonged attempts to get them out by talking to no avail, police forces were forced to enter the compound in order to get them out with the intentions to allow the Fajr [dawn] prayer and to prevent a violent disturbance," it added.
Footage taken from within the mosque apparently shows fireworks being fired by the protesters. Israeli police say stones were thrown at them, injuring one police officer. "When the police entered, stones were thrown at them and fireworks were fired from inside the mosque by a large group of agitators."
Another video appears to show Israeli police beating Palestinians with sticks. One officer was injured in the leg by a stone during the clashes, it said.
The Palestinian Red Crescent later said that Israeli forces were preventing its medics from reaching the mosque. Video released by the police showed fireworks exploding and lighting up the prayer hall as heavily armed officers in riot gear moved in.
Palestinian militants had earlier called for Muslims to lock themselves in the mosque amid reports that Jewish worshippers wanted to sacrifice a goat on the compound for Passover, that begins on Wednesday. Other footage posted on social media appeared to show an officer using a rifle butt and others using sticks to beat Palestinians on the floor amid shouts and screams.
The hilltop site in Jerusalem is the most sacred place in Judaism and the third holiest in Islam. It is known to Jews as the Temple Mount, site of two Biblical temples, and to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif, the site of Muhammad's ascent to Heaven. Pictures of the aftermath showed overturned furniture and prayer mats scattered across the carpet.
The entire compound is considered to be al-Aqsa Mosque by Muslims, but the latest clashes were inside the mosque building itself. The Palestinian Red Crescent reported that 14 Palestinians were injured. It also said Israeli forces prevented its medics from reaching the mosque, though this has not been confirmed.
Jews and other non-Muslims are allowed to go to the compound but not pray, though Palestinians see visits by Jews as attempts to change the delicate status quo. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's spokesman condemned the Israeli raid, describing it as an attack on Muslim worshippers.
"We warn the Occupation [Israel] not to cross the red lines in the holy places, which will lead to the big explosion," Nabil Abu Rudeineh said.
The leader of the Palestinian Islamist militant group Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, called the incident "an unprecedented crime" and warned Israel that there would be "consequences".
Following the clashes, militants fired nine rockets from Gaza, triggering sirens in communities in southern Israel, the Israeli military said.
Four of the rockets were intercepted by its air defence system and another four landed in open areas, it added.
No group has so far said it was behind the rocket fire, but it is believed that Hamas approved the launches.
The Israeli military said its aircraft struck weapon manufacturing sites and a storage site belonging to Hamas in response, as well as a military compound used for training.
Israeli tanks also struck military posts along the Israel-Gaza border fence.
There were no reports of casualties on either side.
Tensions between Israel and Palestinians which escalated into violence at the al-Aqsa mosque compound in May 2021 prompted Hamas to fire rockets towards Jerusalem, triggering an 11-day conflict with Israel.
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