2 yıl önce

Israelis storm Al Aqsa Mosque to celebrate Hanukkah

Jewish groups have called on supporters to converge on the Al Aqsa complex in occupied East Jerusalem to celebrate the 8-day Hanukkah holiday, which started on December 18.

AA Archive

The hundreds of Israeli settlers who stormed the Al Aqsa complex were escorted by right-wing Rabbi Yehuda Glick.

Scores of Israeli settlers have forced their way into the Al Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah, according to a Palestinian agency.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Jordan-run Jerusalem Islamic Endowment Department said 159 settlers entered the flashpoint site in groups through Al Aqsa Mosque’s Al Mugharbah Gate under police protection.

Far-right lawmaker Zvika Fogel from the Jewish Power Party (Otzma Yehudit) party was among those who visited the site, according to the statement.

Jewish groups have called on supporters to converge on the Al Aqsa complex to celebrate the 8-day Hanukkah holiday, which started on December 18.

For Muslims, Al Aqsa represents the world's third-holiest site. Jews, for their part, call the area the Temple Mount, saying it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where Al Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. It annexed the entire city in 1980, in a move that has been never recognised by the international community.

SOURCE: AA