OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)
Israeli police on Friday imposed tough entry restrictions on the Aqsa Mosque in Occupied Jerusalem, leaving it almost empty.
A large number of Israeli police units were deployed in Jerusalem’s Old City and erected barriers in its alleyways.
The Islamic Waqf Department said in a statement that Israeli police only allowed 3,500 worshipers to enter the Mosque to perform the Friday prayer. Only the elderly were allowed in.
Eyewitnesses confirmed that the Old City area resembles a “military barracks,” where Israeli police refuse entry to those who do not live there.
Hundreds of Palestinians were forced to perform prayers in the streets near the Old City, including Salah al-Din Street, al-Musrara, and the Wadi al-Joz neighborhood.
Israeli forces brutally assaulted worshipers in the Wadi al-Joz neighborhood after being prevented from reaching the Aqsa Mosque.
At least one young man was detained near the Bab al-Sahira area.
