OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (Palestine Foundation Information Center), Tens of thousands of Palestinians performed Friday prayer at Aqsa Mosque in Occupied Jerusalem despite heightened Israeli security measures and restrictions on worshipers’ access to the holy site.
Israeli police forces intensified their presence around Aqsa Mosque and at the gates of Jerusalem’s Old City, stopping worshipers and checking their identification documents in measures aimed at restricting Palestinian access to the Mosque.
Israeli troops were deployed heavily at the Mosque’s entrances and throughout the Old City, subjecting Palestinians, particularly young men, to searches and security checks as part of ongoing restrictions on worshipers.
The large turnout followed calls issued on Thursday by Jerusalem-based Palestinian groups urging residents of Occupied Jerusalem and Palestinian communities inside Israel to travel to Aqsa Mosque, participate in Friday prayer and maintain a presence at the holy site.
The groups issued their appeals amid escalating Israeli violations and concerns over attempts to impose new realities at the Mosque.
The calls also coincided with continued incursions by Jewish settlers into the Aqsa Mosque compound under the protection of Israeli forces.
On Thursday, dozens of settlers stormed the Mosque’s courtyards, toured its eastern section and performed Talmudic religious rituals and prayers.
Aqsa Mosque, whose compound covers approximately 144 dunums, continues to face Israeli restrictions and incursions targeting Palestinian worshipers and those maintaining a religious presence at the site.
Palestinian officials and religious groups have repeatedly warned that the growing frequency of settler incursions and attempts to alter arrangements at the compound threaten its historical and legal status quo.
