Clashes rock Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa mosque compound

Clashes have erupted after a number of Israeli soldiers entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem, police and witnesses said. The Israeli security personnel used tear gas and stun grenades, as they entered the compound to arrest “Palestinian stone throwers”. Omar Kiswani, the manager of Al-Aqsa Mosque, told Al Jazeera that 80 “Jewish settlers” protected […]

Clashes have erupted after a number of Israeli soldiers entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem, police and witnesses said.
The Israeli security personnel used tear gas and stun grenades, as they entered the compound to arrest “Palestinian stone throwers”.
Omar Kiswani, the manager of Al-Aqsa Mosque, told Al Jazeera that 80 “Jewish settlers” protected by the Israeli police, attacked the mosque when confronted by Palestinian volunteer guards.
A statement issued by the Israeli police said that “masked protesters who were inside the mosque threw stones and fireworks at police”.
A Muslim witness accused police of entering the mosque and causing damage, saying prayer mats were partially burned.
Clashes later continued outside the mosque complex.
Israeli security forces closed the mosque’s compound to worshippers following the clashes that come just hours before the start of the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned what he called an “attack by the occupier’s military and police against the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the aggression against the faithful who were there.”
Micky Rosenfeld, a spokesman for Israeli police, said that the Israeli police received intelligence in the morning about the possible disturbances at Al-Aqsa Mosque that would involve explosive devices as well as stones thrown at Jewish visitors.
“…[O]ur police officers entered the area, I am talking about the Temple Mount area only, and shut the front doors of the Al-Aqsa Mosque to prevent those riots from overflowing onto the Temple Mount area.
Mustafa Barghouti, the secretary-general of the Palestinian National Initiative, said that the Israeli police were being dishonest.
“I think what happened today is an act of aggression on the part of the Israeli army,” he said, adding that Jewish settlers provoked Palestinians when they entered the mosque.