At night, there were mass riots in the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. The official Palestinian Authority agency, Wafa, claims that Israeli police officers broke into the mosque’s prayer hall and attacked Muslims who were there. The police used stun grenades, poison gas and rubber bullets, as well as batons and butts. Dozens of Muslims were injured.
The press service of the Israel Police gives different information. Late in the evening on April 4, it became known that a large group of extremists had gathered in the Al-Aqsa Mosque. They brought pyrotechnics, sticks and stones to the temple.
The police were ordered to clear the mosque before the morning prayer. Negotiations with extremists did not yield results. It was necessary to carry out a forceful operation, during which several policemen were injured. They threw stones and firecrackers at them. About 350 people were detained.
According to AP, representatives of the youth wing of the Hamas movement gathered in the mosque. Their leaders called to “stand in defense of the Al-Aqsa Mosque.”
While the police were conducting an operation on the Temple Mount, Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip fired rockets into the southern part of Israel. The Israeli air force retaliated.
This round of escalating tensions coincided with the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan and Jewish preparations for Pesach.
Israeli police have released video footage showing fireworks and firecrackers exploding inside the mosque. Stones are flying at the policemen. Law enforcement officers have to go through the mosque under a barrage of stones and firecrackers, covering themselves with shields.
We will remind, “FACTS” wrote about the bloodiest terrorist attack in Israel: people were shot near a synagogue in Jerusalem.
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