UPDATE - Number of injured in clashes rises to 80 in East Jerusalem

UPDATES NUMBER INJURED, ADDS DETAILS; CHANGES HEADLINE, LEDE; ADDS TOTAL INJURED SINCE FRIDAY

By Hamdi Yildiz and Alaa Mohamed Aboueleinin Aly

JERUSALEM (AA) - The number of people injured rose to 80 in clashes between Israeli police and Palestinians in East Jerusalem, the Palestine Red Crescent reported early Sunday.

A one-year-old and five children were among those injured and 14 people were hospitalized because of injuries, the group said in a statement.

A health care professional working for an ambulance was also wounded.

Police battered protestors using physical violence, the group reported in an earlier statement.

Witnesses told Anadolu Agency that an old woman was wounded in her face by a canister of a gas bomb and Israeli police took seven Palestinians into custody.

They said police used pressurized water on Palestinians who gathered near the Damascus Gate.

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

Protests came as the Israeli Central Court in East Jerusalem approved a decision to evict seven Palestinian families from their homes in favor of Israeli settlers at the beginning of 2021.

Israeli police attempted to disperse worshippers inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound Friday evening, using stun grenades and gas bombs.

Women were also targeted by Israeli forces, according to witnesses.

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.

The number of people injured in clashes since Friday currently stands at 285.

* Writing by Dilan Pamuk in Ankara