Clashes in East Jerusalem
July 26, 2015
Israeli police said they made a rare but brief intrusion into the entrance of Al-Aqsa mosque on Sunday, but only to prevent "rioters" barricaded inside from continuing to throw rocks and firecrackers.
"It was only to close the doors," said Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld. "We didn't burst inside. We didn't storm inside."
No serious injuries were reported. According to the Reuters news agency, police used stun grenades as they came to dismantle makeshift barricades set up by masked youths, who also threw rocks and flares.
Contentious site
East Jerusalem's historical compound houses the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa mosque, which is revered as the third-holiest site in Islam. It is known to Jews as the Temple Mount, Judaism's holiest location.
Sunday is the Jewish holy day of Tisha B'Av, when Jews mourn the Roman destruction of the site's former second temple in 70 AD.
Tens of thousands of Jews were expected to visit the Wailing Wall, just below Temple Mount.
Various attempts made in the past by ultranationalist Jews to visit the hilltop plaza have riled Muslims.
Highly sensitive site
In May, Israeli police arrested a number of Palestinians and Israelis after a confrontation near the mosque.
Jews are permitted to visit the compound but are officially barred from praying there to avoid confrontation. Ultranationalist Jews are sometimes seen praying discreetly.
Israeli security forces control entry, but under a longstanding agreement, Jordan remains custodian of the area's Muslim holy sites.
Conquest and destruction
The site has a history of conquest and destruction. Muslims constructed the Dome of the Rock in 691 AD, and Al-Aqsa mosque 14 years later.
In 1099, Christian Crusaders wrested Jerusalem from Muslim control. Saladin recaptured Jerusalem in 1187. Jordan retains oversight via its Islamic Waqf trust.
Israel seized east Jerusalem during the 1967 Six-Day War and later annexed it in a move never recognized by the international community.
Israel regards all of Jerusalem as its undivided capital. Palestinians view the eastern sector as a capital of their future state alongside Israel.
ipj/mkg (AFP, kna, Reuters, AP)