Middle East Monitor / April 8, 2023
Following two days of violent Israeli attacks on worshippers at Al-Aqsa Mosque, around 140,000 Muslim worshippers attended Isha and Taraweeh prayers on the 16th day of Ramadan, WAFA News Agency reported.
This came despite the tightened restrictions and amplified military deployments at the holy site gates and across the Old City of Jerusalem.
On Tuesday, Israeli occupation forces raided Al-Aqsa Mosque and assaulted worshippers. Shocking scenes of the attacks were widely shared on social media, sparking international outcry.
The heavily-armed police officers were seen pushing peaceful Muslim worshippers off their prayer mats, including elderly men, forcing them to leave the site.
In other scenes, police were filmed beating worshippers with batons and rifle butts while they appeared to be lying on the floor and firing tear gas inside the mosque, while women were heard screaming in protest.
The Israeli occupation claims that Muslim worshippers desecrated Al-Aqsa Mosque and, therefore, they wanted to evacuate them.
Witnesses from Jerusalem refuted the claims of the Israeli police and said they were evacuated from the holy site during the settler raids in the days of the Jewish Passover.
