East Jerusalem activist greets Turkish president, public

By Esat Firat

JERUSALEM (AA) - A Palestinian activist sent her compliments to Turkey and its president as protests continued Monday against the eviction of families from their homes by the occupying Israeli forces.

"From the heart of Sheikh Jarrah, we greet our public in Turkey. Millions of greetings to [Recep Tayyip] Erdogan," activist Fatima Es-Sus Umm Eymen told Anadolu Agency, visiting the agency's team of reporters during a protest.

She called on the Turkish president to "restore Palestine's liberty."

Erdogan said Saturday evening that the "cruel Israel, terror state of Israel, has been violently and immorally attacking the Muslims in Jerusalem, who dream of nothing but protecting all the things they deem sacred, the homes they have inherited [from their families] for thousands of years, their lands."

- Recent developments in East Jerusalem

Palestinians in Jerusalem in recent days have protested in solidarity with the residents of the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood amid attacks by Israeli police.

The crisis stems from a ruling by the Israeli Central Court in East Jerusalem, which approved a decision to evict seven Palestinian families from their homes in the neighborhood in favor of Israeli settlers at the beginning of this year.

Israeli police attempted to disperse worshippers inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound Friday evening using stun grenades and tear gas. Hundreds of Palestinians were injured in the attacks, which have been condemned worldwide.

Al-Aqsa Mosque is the world's third-holiest site for Muslims. Jews call the area the "Temple Mount," claiming 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 never recognized by the international community.

*Writing by Dilan Pamuk in Ankara