The Israeli occupation forces' incursions into the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque and the attacks on worshipers have continued since dawn on Friday, while the Palestinian Red Crescent reported that the number of injured has risen to more than 100 as a result of beatings and tear gas canisters.

The director of Al-Aqsa Mosque, Omar Al-Kiswani, told Al-Jazeera that confrontations are continuing in the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque, and that the occupation forces used excessive force against worshipers.

The occupation forces used tear gas, as well as sound and smoke bombs, and batons, in an attempt to evacuate the mosque and its courtyards.

The Israeli occupation police also closed streets in the vicinity of the Old City, and placed iron barricades at the entrance to Bab al-Amud.

The Palestinian News Agency reported that the occupation forces closed all doors leading to Al-Aqsa Mosque except for Bab Hatta, and that a number of worshipers are still trapped inside Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock.

The Palestinian Red Crescent reported that 117 were injured so far as a result of the ongoing confrontations in Al-Aqsa Mosque, and said that the occupation forces impeded the work of ambulance crews that arrived in the Bab Al-Asbat area.

A spokesman for the Palestinian Red Crescent said that most of the injuries were caused by beatings, tear gas canisters and rubber bullets.

Israeli media also reported that 3 Israeli policemen were injured during the clashes at Al-Aqsa Mosque.

In a previous bulletin on Al-Jazeera, the preacher of Al-Aqsa Mosque, Sheikh Ikrima Sabri, said that the Israeli occupation forces are trying to evacuate the mosque of Muslim worshipers, to facilitate the settlers’ storming of it.

Sabri added that the situation is very dangerous, and that the Palestinian Authority must bear its responsibility, and called on Arab countries to shoulder their responsibilities as well.


In the context of escalating measures, the Israeli occupation forces carried out new incursions into the West Bank, as a result of which 3 Palestinian youths died in Jenin governorate, and a fourth succumbed to his injuries in Nablus.

This brings the number of martyrs who were killed by the occupation bullets since Wednesday in the West Bank to 7 martyrs.

A number of Palestinians were injured in the village of Kafrdan, southwest of Jenin, in clashes that occurred during the withdrawal of the occupation army from it, and the condition of one of the injured was described as serious.

The occupation forces arrested 4 young men from the village, including 3 of the prisoners' brothers, Ayham Kammaji, one of the six prisoners who escaped from Gilboa prison last September.

A force of the occupation army also stormed the town of Al-Yamoun, north of Jenin, and raided a number of houses, and arrested at least 3 young men.

And the Israeli occupation authorities decided to tighten their military closure on the Palestinian territories, starting from Friday until dawn on Sunday, the Jewish holiday of Passover.

The Coordinator of Occupation Operations announced that the decision came after assessing the security situation, as a comprehensive closure will be imposed on the West Bank and the closure of crossings with the Gaza Strip before the Jewish holiday of Passover.

In the same context, the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, made two phone calls to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Ismail Haniyeh, head of the Political Bureau of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), in which he discussed the latest developments in the Palestinian arena.

During the two calls, the Emir of Qatar affirmed the State of Qatar's firm and supportive position for the Palestinian cause and the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, foremost of which is the establishment of their independent state on their homeland, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

The Emir also stressed Qatar's rejection of all escalatory measures practiced by the Israeli occupation forces, and called for work to calm down and reduce escalation and tension.

For his part, Stephane Dujarric, a spokesman for the Secretary-General of the United Nations, said that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reiterated the need for Israeli forces to exercise the utmost restraint.

Dujarric also noted that every use of force must be investigated quickly and thoroughly.