Israeli Settlers Storm Al-Aqsa Complex, Police Arrest 20 Palestinians

Tuesday 26 May 2015

Israeli Settlers Storm Al-Aqsa Complex, Police Arrest 20 Palestinians

Local Editor

Palestine: Zionist settlers storm Al-Aqsa Mosque

Scores of Zionist settlers forced their way into occupied East Jerusalem's flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound on Monday to mark the Jewish Shavuot holiday, a Palestinian official said Tuesday.

"At least 60 Jewish settlers in groups – backed by Israeli police – stormed the holy compound through the Al-Magharbeh Gate," Sheikh Omar al-Qiswani, Al-Aqsa Mosque director, told Anadolu Agency.

"The settlers inspected the complex, passing by the Al-Qibali and the Dome of the Rock mosques, and tried to perform Talmudic rituals before leaving the compound through the Al-Silsila Gate," he said.

Al-Qiswani added that the occupation army had detained five Palestinians inside the holy complex and transferred them to a detention center in Jerusalem's Old City.

In similar development, the Zionist police detained 20 Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem in the past 24 hours, a Palestinian NGO said today.

"Since Monday, over 20 Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem, mostly children, have been detained," Nasser Qous of the Palestinian Prisoners' Society said in a statement.

According to Qous, the detainees have already appeared before Israeli courts, which remanded most of them in custody.

The remainder, he said, were ordered to pay fines or bail in order to be released.

East Jerusalem has recently witnessed clashes between Palestinian residents and Israelis coming to the holy city over the past two days to mark the Jewish holiday of Shavuot.

Tension has run high at the flashpoint site since Sunday morning against the backdrop of calls by several Zionist organizations for supporters to enter the holy site en masse to mark the holiday.