[ "The army broke the upper windows of the mosque and began
throwing stun grenades at us," said one Palestinian worshiper who was
arrested alongside hundreds of others.]
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ISRAELI FORCES DRAW CONDEMNATION OVER ‘BARBARIC’ RAID OF AL-AQSA
MOSQUE  
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Kenny Stancil
April 5, 2023
Common Dreams
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_ "The army broke the upper windows of the mosque and began throwing
stun grenades at us," said one Palestinian worshiper who was arrested
alongside hundreds of others. _

Armed police in riot gear stormed the prayer hall of Al-Aqsa Mosque
before dawn on Wednesday , [Mahmoud Illean/AP Photo]

 

Israeli police brutally attacked Palestinians inside the Al-Aqsa
Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem on Tuesday night, injuring
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least a dozen peaceful worshipers and arresting more than 400 during
the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

"Dozens of heavily armed officers stormed the site, used stun
grenades, and fired tear gas into the Qibli prayer hall—the building
with the silver dome—where hundreds of men, women, elderly people,
and children were staying overnight to pray," _Middle East
Eye_reported
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"Some eyewitnesses said rubber-coated steel bullets were also fired."

"Israeli officers then beat worshipers with batons and riot guns,
wounding many, before arresting them," the outlet noted. "Videos from
inside the mosque showed Israeli officers repeatedly hitting people
with batons while they appeared to lie on the floor. Meanwhile, the
cries for help from women and children could be heard in the
background."

The violent raid "continued into the morning when Israeli forces were
once again seen assaulting and pushing Palestinians out of the
compound and preventing them from praying–before Israelis were
allowed in under police protection," _Al Jazeera_reported
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"At least 400 Palestinians were arrested on Wednesday and remain in
Israeli custody... at a police station in Atarot."

Bakr Owais, a 24-year-old student who was detained, told the outlet:
"The army broke the upper windows of the mosque and began throwing
stun grenades at us... They made us lay on the ground and they
handcuffed us one by one and took us all out. They kept swearing at us
during this time. It was very barbaric."

The Palestinian Commission of Detainees' Affairs estimates
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between 400 and 500 men have been taken into custody.

According to _Middle East Eye_: "The Palestine Red Crescent Society
(PRCS) said it received multiple reports of injuries at Al-Aqsa Mosque
but was unable to estimate the number of casualties as Israeli
forces blocked medics
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reaching the wounded. One medic was attacked by an Israeli police
officer and wounded outside one of the mosque's gates."

_Al Jazeera_ reported that at least 12 Palestinians have suffered
injuries—including bruises, fractures, and breathing problems caused
by tear gas inhalation—at the hands of Israeli police officers. At
least three of the victims have been transported to a hospital.

"As we approach Passover—a celebration of freedom—the Israeli
military is beating Palestinians inside Al-Aqsa Mosque... The
contradiction speaks volumes."

The Israeli crackdown, which one observer described
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a premeditated attack intended "to send a message to the Palestinians
that Israel is the sole sovereign over Al-Aqsa that can decide who can
enter the site and when," was widely condemned.

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh denounced
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latest assault on Islam's third holiest site as "an unprecedented
crime" and urged Palestinians "to go en masse to the Al-Aqsa Mosque to
defend it."

Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said
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"what happened in Jerusalem is a major crime against the worshipers."

"Prayer in Al-Aqsa Mosque is not with the permission of the [Israeli]
occupation, but rather it is our right," said Shtayyeh. "Al-Aqsa is
for the Palestinians and for all Arabs and Muslims, and the raiding of
it is a spark of revolution against the occupation."

PA presidential spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeineh added
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"what the occupation is doing right now at holy sites such as in
Al-Aqsa, and the attacking of worshipers is an example of the
relentless war against Palestinian people and Arab nations, which will
ignite fires across the region."

Following the raid, "local mosques around Jerusalem called on people
through speaker phones to rally in support of those
assaulted," _Middle East Eye_ reported. "Confrontations between
residents and police broke out
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several locations across the city."

The outlet continued:

In the occupied West Bank, hundreds of Palestinians took to the
streets
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condemn the assault and confront Israeli troops at checkpoints and
army posts. Rallies also took place in Gaza, Umm al-Fahm (a
Palestinian town in Israel), and the Jordanian capital Amman.

Rockets were later fired
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the Gaza Strip toward Israel. At least one rocket landed inside the
country and caused damage to a food factory, according to Israeli
media.

This was followed by air strikes from the Israeli military targeting
several locations in the besieged strip. No casualties were recorded
from either side.

The final two weeks of Ramadan overlap with Passover—a weeklong
Jewish holiday that begins Wednesday—sparking fears of additional
violence in and around the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.

According to _Middle East Eye_: "Israeli authorities have been
removing worshippers from Al-Aqsa Mosque every night since the start
of Ramadan after the Taraweeh prayer ends around 9:00 pm local time,
albeit without this widespread use of violence. They have also been
restricting who can enter the site and when, in what Palestinians say
is an infringement on their freedom of religious practice. Itikaf at
Al-Aqsa Mosque is not allowed by Israeli authorities outside of the
last ten days of Ramadan, a ban that Palestinians refuse to comply
with."

"Israeli forces regularly empty the mosque of Palestinians outside the
five Muslim prayers, especially overnight and after dawn prayer to
ensure a smooth incursion of Israeli settlers which takes place daily
around 7:30 am local time," the outlet noted. "Temple Movement groups,
which facilitate the settler incursions and advocate for the
destruction of Al-Aqsa, have called for mass stormings throughout the
week... They have also called for conducting ritual animal slaughter
at the site which could trigger anger from Palestinians and Muslims
worldwide. Palestinian groups have urged mass presence at the site
this week to prevent the planned animal slaughter and mass
incursions."

"Israel has murdered over 90 Palestinians, including at least 17
children, so far this year, and it is only April."

On Tuesday night, Jewish Voice for Peace tweeted
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approach Passover—a celebration of freedom—the Israeli military is
beating Palestinians inside Al-Aqsa Mosque and blockading Palestinian
cities across the occupied West Bank. The contradiction speaks
volumes. Liberation cannot come at the cost of another people's
freedom."

Alluding to recent protests
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a far-right takeover of Israel's judiciary, Palestinian journalist
Rula Jebreal similarly argued
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"there cannot be a movement for an exclusive liberal democracy for
Jews, and apartheid for Palestinians."

Numerous human rights groups around the world have condemned
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as an apartheid state and called on the United States to cease
providing $3.8 billion
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annual military support to the anti-democratic regime.

According to
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Palestinian national committee of the global Boycott, Divestment, and
Sanctions (BDS) movement, "Israel has murdered over 90 Palestinians,
including at least 17 children, so far this year, and it is only
April."

"The BDS movement calls particularly on our brothers and sisters in
the Arab world and on supporters in countries that reject diplomatic
relations with Israel to intensify pressure against normalization of
any relations with apartheid," the committee continued. "What ties
with Israel normalize is unmasked Islamophobia, colonial violence, and
apartheid brutality."

"Globally we call for pressure on states to impose an immediate
military embargo and lawful targeted sanctions on apartheid," it
added. "We call on our supporters worldwide to escalate all BDS
campaigns! The time is now to end Israeli apartheid."

As _Haaretz _reported
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"Jordan and Egypt, both involved in recent U.S.-backed efforts
to de-escalate tensions
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Israel and the Palestinians, issued separate statements condemning the
incident. Saudi Arabia also condemned the Israeli police's actions,
with its foreign ministry putting out a statement saying it undermines
peace efforts."

Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit, meanwhile, said
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a statement that "the extremist approaches that control the policy of
the Israeli government will lead to widespread confrontations with the
Palestinians if they are not put to an end."

Officials from Jordan, Egypt, and Palestine have called for an
emergency meeting of the League in the wake of Israel's latest assault
on the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.

* israeli-palestinian conflict
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* police brutality
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* Al-Aqsa Mosque
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