Jewish settlers storm Al-Aqsa for New Year celebration

By Fatima Abu Sbitan

JERUSALEM (AA) - Scores of Jewish settlers forced their way into Jerusalem’s flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound on Sunday to celebrate the Jewish New Year, according to Palestinian authorities.

"Around 235 Jewish settlers have entered the compound," the Religious Endowments Authority -- a Jordan-run authority responsible for overseeing the city's Muslim and Christian holy sites, said in a statement.

It said the settlers entered the Al-Aqsa -- accompanied by Israeli police -- through the compound’s Al-Mugharbah Gate.

The Jewish New Year celebrations started Sunday and will continue until Tuesday.

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

Israel occupied East Jerusalem, in which the Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War.

In a move never recognized by the international community, it annexed the entire city in 1980, claiming it as the Jewish state’s “eternal and undivided” capital.