Agencies-Gaza post
42 wounded in Israeli raids at Al Aqsa Mosque: Red Crescent
Following weeks of Israeli raids on the holy site, at least 42 Palestinians were injured by Israeli soldiers who stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in east Jerusalem on Friday, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent.
The violence occurred on the final Friday of Ramadan, the Muslim holy month. According to the Red Crescent, 22 individuals were transported to the hospital, but no serious injuries were reported.
Witnesses and AFP reporters said Israeli soldiers deployed teargas and rubber bullets at Palestinian worshippers.
Three persons were arrested, according to witnesses, two for throwing stones and one for allegedly “inciting the rabble.”
“The place has been peaceful for the past hour, and (Muslim) worshippers are safely entering (the compound),” sources reported.
Nearly 300 Palestinians have been injured in Israeli attacks on the Al-Aqsa compound in the last two weeks as worshippers observe Ramadan at Islam’s third holiest place.
Israeli attacks on the site during Ramadan have sparked international outrage, but Israel claims it was forced to act to stop operatives from the Islamist groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad from causing “widespread unrest” across occupied Jerusalem.
