Tension runs high in Jerusalem as Israeli settlers gather to start ‘flag march’

Tension runs high in Jerusalem as Israeli settlers gather to start ‘flag march’

Thousands of flag-waving settlers gather in Bab al-Amud area in Jerusalem’s Old City

By Said Amouri

JERUSALEM (AA) - Thousands of Israeli settlers began to gather in Bab al-Amud area (Damascus Gate) near East Jerusalem's Old City on Sunday to participate in a controversial flag march through the occupied city amid high tensions.

Settlers organize the march to mark what they call the day of unifying Jerusalem, in reference to Israel’s occupation of the city in 1967.

According to eyewitnesses, hundreds of flag-waving settlers arrived in Bab al-Amud area, including far-right lawmaker Itamar BenGvir.

Settlers chanted pro-Israeli slogans and chants against Palestinians and Islam’s prophet Muhammad, the witnesses said.

Scuffles between settlers and Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem were reported sporadically.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society earlier said 15 Palestinians were injured in assaults by Israeli police and settlers in Jerusalem’s Old City.

On Sunday, at least 1,687 settlers forced their way into the flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque complex, according to Jordan-run Islamic Waqf Department, which oversees holy sites in Jerusalem.

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.

Clashes during last year’s flag march led to an 11-day Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip during which more than 260 Palestinians were killed and thousands injured. Thirteen Israelis were also killed in Palestinian fire from Gaza during the course of the conflict. The violence, the worst in years, came to a halt under an Egyptian-brokered truce.

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 Ahmed Asmar in Ankara

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