The Israeli police on Friday arrested two Turkish citizens after they performed Friday prayer at al-Aqsa Mosque.
Earlier in the day eyewitnesses told Anadolu Agency that the Israeli police banned a number of Turkish worshipers from entering the al-Aqsa Mosque compound noting that the worshipers were wearing Turkish flag shirts.
The non-government Palestinian Prisoner Society said in an earlier statement that the Israeli police arrested four Turkish citizens and extended their detention for 24 hours before the Anadolu reporter confirmed that the detainees were two.
Palestinian and Turkish protesters participated in a mass demonstration launched in the courtyards of al-Aqsa Mosque on Friday in rejection of the US recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
Spokesman for the Islamic Awqaf (endowments) Department in Jerusalem Firas al-Dibs said that nearly 45000 worshipers performed Friday prayer at al-Aqsa Mosque.
The UN on Thursday by a majority of 128 votes approved a draft resolution saying that the status of Jerusalem must be decided through direct Palestinian-Israeli negotiations in accordance with the relevant Security Council resolutions.
The US president Donald Trump on 6th December recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and announced his intention to move Washington’s embassy there arousing widespread international condemnation.
