Palestinian sources said dozens of people suffocated to death Tuesday night in clashes with Israeli police as they stormed the al-Qibli prayer hall at the al-Aqsa mosque east of Jerusalem.
Police fired rubber bullets and tear gas canisters at Palestinians who were in the Al-Aqsa mosque with the intention of praying at night, Wafa, the official Palestinian news agency, reported.
The agency reported that the police broke one of the windows of the Al-Kibli prayer hall and raised its roof, and also used gas and sonic bombs on the believers, after which they stormed the place for prayer from the side of the clinic and forced the worshipers to leave.
It comes amid tensions at the Al-Aqsa Mosque ahead of calls from Jewish groups to stab the Passover offerings, which begin today and last 12 days, inside the mosque as Palestinians warn of the move.
And the closing of the shutter in the blessed mosque of Al-Aqsa is repeated from the night of the third day of the holy month of Ramadan.
On the other hand, three Palestinians were wounded by Israeli army bullets during clashes that broke out after a raid on the town of Kafr Nima, west of Ramallah, and were taken to hospital for treatment.
In addition, three Palestinian youths were wounded by live bullets, one of them seriously, during clashes with the Israeli army in the Deisheh refugee camp south of Bethlehem. A 16-year-old boy was also hit by rubber bullets and others suffocated during similar clashes in Al-Khader city.
In Jerusalem, Israeli police shot and wounded a 13-year-old boy of moderate severity on the pretext that he had thrown stones at a settlers’ car in the Bir Ayub area of Silwan.
And Palestinian factions, including Fatah and Hamas, have warned of the consequences of escalating tensions in East Jerusalem and of an explosion that would engulf all Palestinian territories.
