Temple Mount Quieter For Muslim Prayers After Israel Backs Down On Security
Image by getty images
The main prayer session at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa mosque ended more quietly on Friday than expected with Israel setting an age limit on who could attend after two weeks of violent protests over tougher Israeli security measures.
Extra police stood guard throughout the walled Old City, some wearing riot gear, some on horseback, in anticipation of mass protests. But aside from a few hotspots where Palestinian protestors briefly clashed with Israeli officers, serious violence did not recur.
Throughout Friday Israel limited entry to the mosque compound, a raised marble-and-stone plaza referred to by Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and by Jews as the Temple Mount, to men over the age of 50. Women of all ages were allowed in.
Under immense diplomatic pressure Israel removed the metal detectors on Thursday, a move welcomed by the Arab world, but disturbances quickly resumed when thousands of Muslim worshippers surged back into the mosque.
A few thousand people made their way to Al-Aqsa for Friday prayers, police said, while a younger crowd remained outside and worshipped in narrow side streets. When the prayer session ended those congregated left the area peacefully, for the most part.
Television footage showed some brief confrontations involving a group of Palestinians, a number of them throwing bottles, and police dispersing them with stun grenades.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we need 500 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Our Goal: 500 gifts during our Passover Pledge Drive!
