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Scores of Jewish settlers storm Al-Aqsa Mosque complex

Some 154 settlers converge on flashpoint holy site passing through Al-Mugharbah Gate

News Service
14:56 - 17/09/2019 Tuesday
Update: 14:59 - 17/09/2019 Tuesday
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Jewish settlers storm Al-Aqsa compound
Jewish settlers storm Al-Aqsa compound

Scores of Jewish settlers on Tuesday forced their way into Jerusalem’s flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, according to a Palestinian official.

“Around 154 Jewish settlers have entered the compound,” said Religious Endowments Authority -- a Jordan-run authority responsible for overseeing the city's Muslim and Christian holy sites.

According to the statement, the settlers entered the Al-Aqsa -- accompanied by Israeli police -- through the compound’s Al-Mugharbah Gate.

For Muslims, Al-Aqsa represents the world's third-holiest site. Jews, for their part, refer to the area as the “Temple Mount,” claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem, in which the Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War.

In a move never recognized by the international community, it annexed the entire city in 1980, claiming it as the Jewish state’s “eternal and undivided” capital.

#al-Aqsa
#Israel
#jewish settlers
#mosque complex
#world's third-holiest site
5 years ago