An estimated 130,000 Muslims from all over Palestine attended the third Friday of the holy fast month of Ramadan prayer at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque, amidst tight Israeli restrictions, particularly at checkpoints leading to the occupied city, according to officials from the Muslim Endowment (Waqf) Department. Around 130,000 Muslims, including from Jerusalem, Arab communities in Israel, and from various West Bank governorates, flocked to the holy mosque in Jerusalem since the early morning hours to perform the prayers of the third Friday of the holy month of Ramadan despite the heavy restrictions imposed by the Israeli forces. This morning, the occupation forces closed the Qalandia military checkpoint and prevented Palestinians from entering Jerusalem to perform the third Friday prayers of Ramadan at al-Aqsa Mosque. It further denied worshipers below the age of 55 entry to the city. In Jerusalem, Israeli police reportedly closed various crossroads with iron barriers, and deployed about 2300 additional police officers in the streets and alleys of the Old City and at the mosque’s gates, impeding worshippers’ access. Early morning today, Israeli police officers denied worshipers below the age of 40 entry to the holy site as well as assaulted many of them with batons at Bab Hutta Gate, one of the main gates leading to the mosque.
Source: Palestine News & Information Agency (WAFA)