At least two Palestinians are killed by Israeli security forces during demonstrations over the closure of the Al-Aqsa compound. One Palestinian was reportedly shot dead by an Israeli settler. Updated below: Later Friday night, three Israeli settlers were stabbed to death in a West Bank settlement.
Photos by Oren Ziv, Yotam Ronen / Activestills.org
Three Palestinians were killed and hundreds of others were wounded in clashes with Israeli security forces in Jerusalem on Friday. Clashes erupted following a mass prayer in the Palestinian neighborhoods surrounding the Old City, after Israeli authorities placed restrictions on entry to Haram al-Sharif compound for prayer for second straight Friday, leaving in place new contentious metal detectors.
Among those killed were 17-year-old Muhammad Mahmoud Sharaf, who was reportedly shot dead by an Israeli settler in the East Jerusalem settlement of Ma’ale HaZeitim, adjacent to the Palestinian neighborhood Ras al-Amud, outside the Old City. Israeli forces also shot and killed another Palestinian during demonstrations in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of A-Tur.
Palestinians retrieved the body from Makassed Hospital, sneaking it out of the hospital without the police noticing and bringing it to a-Tur for a quick funeral, after it was reported that security forces had raided the hospital, where dozens of wounded Palestinians had been evacuated. It has become common in recent years for Israeli police to seize and refuse to release for burial the bodies of Palestinians killed by security forces.
Israeli forces also shot and killed a 17-year-old Palestinian in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Abu Dis.
Thousands of Palestinians marched toward the Old City on Friday to demonstrate against increased Israeli security measures outside the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, following a deadly attack at the site by three Palestinian citizens of Israel last week, which left two Israeli Border Police officers dead. Worshippers held peaceful mass prayers in the neighborhoods surrounding the Old City, adhering to calls for civil disobedience by Palestinian leaders, refusing to pass through the new metal detectors. Following the prayers, clashes broke out in the neighborhoods of A-Tur, Wadi Joz, Silwan, Abu Dis, Azariya.
Police decided Friday morning that the metal detectors installed at the entrance of the Al-Aqsa compound earlier this week would remain in place, following overnight discussions by the Israeli security cabinet. The decision came despite recommendations by both the IDF and the Shin Bet to remove them. Israeli police also decided to prevent Palestinian men below the age of 50 from entering the Old City. (For more on Israel’s new security measures at the compound, click here).
Israeli forces also suppressed protests across the West Bank Friday, reportedly wounding two Palestinians critically in Hebron and Ramallah, respectively. According to the Palestinian Red Crescent, hundreds of Palestinians were wounded in the clashes. Meanwhile, Israeli police reported that four officers were wounded by stone throwing in East Jerusalem.
Update:
Late Friday night, a Palestinian man infiltrated the West Bank settlement of Halamish and stabbed three members of an Israeli settler family in their home, killing three of them.
(This post will be continuously updated throughout the day).