Israeli forces storm Al-Aqsa Mosque, 10 hurt, 3 held

Israeli police forces stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque this morning, leaving at least 10 worshippers injured and detaining three, a Palestinian official was quoted as saying by Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency.

Thousands of Palestinians were heading to Al-Aqsa, a flashpoint of religious conflict in Jerusalem, to perform the Friday prayers when Israeli police attacked and fired rubber-coated metal bullets at them, injuring at least 10, one of them in the head, reported Anadolu Agency.

The police then reportedly forced all the worshippers to leave the compound and detained three of them.

Israel also tightened restrictions around the Old City of Jerusalem and inspected ID cards of worshippers coming from Arab towns in Israel and East Jerusalem.

This is the third Friday in a row that Israeli police stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque and attacked worshippers after morning prayer, according to the report.

Earlier this month, Palestinians launched the “Great Fajr Campaign” or “Dawn of Hope campaign ” on social media, calling on people to show their devotion to the mosque and their refusal to accept Israeli incursions by praying in the Al-Aqsa Mosque and Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, in the occupied West Bank.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem during the 1967 Middle East war.

In a move never recognised by the international community, Israel annexed the entire city in 1980, claiming it as the self-proclaimed Jewish state's "eternal and undivided" capital.

Sacred to Muslims, Christians, and Jews, Jerusalem is home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, which for Muslims represents the world's third holiest site. Jews refer to the area as the Temple Mount, claiming it was the site of two prominent Jewish temples in ancient times. The complex also includes the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, one of the most sacred Christian sites in the world.