Clashes in Jerusalem: Muslim worshipers protected Israeli police
Muslims pray as clashes erupt on the Esplanade des Mosques on May 8, 2021. REUTERS - AMMAR AWAD
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2 min
Tensions still so high between Palestinians and Israelis.
At least 90 people were injured in clashes between Israeli police and Palestinian protesters on May 8.
But this toll could have been much heavier without the intervention of faithful Muslims who protected the Israeli police on the Mosque Esplanade.
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With our correspondent in Jerusalem,
Sami Boukhelifa
As soon as the evening prayer was finished at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, young people gathered in large numbers.
After days of tension in Jerusalem, they are ready to do battle with the Israeli security forces, present on the Esplanade des Mosques.
The spirits are heated, the projectiles fly.
Dozens of faithful intervene quickly.
Mohamed and several of his friends protect the Israeli police.
“
These thugs don't represent us.
We are here to pray, not to start a riot.
Al-Aqsa is a place of prayer
”, indignant the young man.
In the process, an imam takes over.
Loudspeaker in hand, he demands an immediate return to calm.
Haythem, a young Palestinian, welcomes this initiative.
“
It's a wise decision.
The situation must not degenerate, it is not in our interest.
We are here to recite verses from the Quran and rely on God.
And in the end you will see that all will be well thanks to Him.
"
To maintain calm, dozens of faithful Palestinians form rows to pray and especially to put the Israeli police out of the reach of thugs.
"
There have been 90 wounded in violent clashes
" in Jerusalem, the Palestinian Red Crescent said in an update, revising upwards a previous toll of fifty wounded.
In the wake of this violence, a rocket was fired from the Gaza Strip towards Israel which announced that it had struck positions of the Islamist movement Hamas in this Palestinian enclave of two million inhabitants.
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