966 settlers enter Al-Aqsa Mosque, Palestinians assaulted in Old City

Occupied Jerusalem, Sept. 29 (SANA)  A total of 966 Israeli settlers entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound Tuesday through the Moroccan Gate under heavy Israeli police protection, while Palestinians were assaulted in Jerusalem’s Old City, according to the Jerusalem Governorate.

The Palestinian News and Information Agency (WAFA) quoted the governorate as saying the settlers performed religious rituals in the mosque’s courtyards.

The governorate said settlers physically assaulted and dragged Palestinians in the Old City, particularly around Damascus Gate, and posted footage documenting the incidents on social media.

It said such attacks were no longer isolated incidents but had become increasingly frequent, affecting Palestinians in the Old City, including elderly people, women and shop owners, as well as journalists and photographers carrying out their work.

The governorate said turning Jerusalem’s streets and neighborhoods, particularly the Old City and its entrances, into areas for displays of force and imposing settlers’ rituals at the expense of Palestinians’ daily lives and rights infringed on their freedom of movement and security and contributed to what it described as a policy of imposing new realities in the city.

The governorate called on the international community and international human rights and media organizations to monitor attacks and harassment against Palestinians in Jerusalem and work to ensure the protection of Palestinian civilians and end what it described as a policy of impunity.

The developments came during Sukkot and amid heightened Israeli security measures and restrictions on Palestinian movement around Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Old City. The Jerusalem Governorate has warned that measures imposed during the Jewish holidays are disrupting the movement and daily lives of Palestinians in Jerusalem.

On Monday, 1,731 Israeli settlers entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in successive groups under heavy Israeli police protection, according to WAFA. The agency reported that roads leading to the Old City and Al-Aqsa were closed or restricted during the incursions, affecting Palestinian movement.

R.H/R.K