Thousands of Palestinians barred from entering Quds for Friday prayer

The Israeli occupation police in the morning turned the occupied city of Jerusalem into a military zone and prevented thousands of Palestinians from entering it for the Friday prayer at the Aqsa Mosque. Thousands of police and border troops were deployed throughout east Jerusalem, including the Old City and the area around the Aqsa Mosque, according to local sources.

The Israeli police also banned, for the second week, thousands of Palestinians from the West Bank from entering Jerusalem to pray at the Aqsa Mosque. Only men over age 45 and women of all ages who hold permits were hardly allowed to enter the holy city for the Friday prayer.

Verbal altercations and physical confrontations between Palestinian young men and Israeli soldiers happened at West Bank checkpoints and crossings that lead to Jerusalem. Some citizens reportedly fell unconscious as a result of their presence in stampedes and their exposure to scorching heat during their attempts to cross into Jerusalem. Meanwhile, scores of young men tried to enter Jerusalem by climbing over the separation walls, but police patrols spotted many of them and opened rubber bullets at them.