Scores of Israeli settlers tour Al-Aqsa complex

By Abdel Raouf Arnaout

JERUSALEM (AA) – Scores of Jewish settlers forced their way into East Jerusalem’s flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque complex on Monday, according to a Palestinian official.

"Around 139 extremist settlers stormed the Al-Aqsa compound today," Firas al-Dibs, a spokesman for Jerusalem's Religious Endowments Authority, said in a statement.

He said the settlers entered the site through the compound’s Al-Mugharbah Gate.

Since 2003, Israeli police have allowed settlers to move into the flashpoint site through the same gate.

For Muslims, the 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, Israel annexed the entire city in 1980, claiming it as the self-proclaimed Jewish state’s “eternal and undivided” capital.

*Writing by Ali Abo Rezeg