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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| Stone-throwing Arabs hurt 11 Border Policemen in Jerusalem |
| 2009-10-10 |
| Rock-throwing Arabs lightly wounded eleven Border Policemen in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Ra'as al-Amud on Friday, as tensions in the capital flared yet again. Four of the policemen were taken to a hospital for treatment; the others were treated at the scene. Officers arrested two Palestinians for hurling stones. The disturbances came hours after Police Commissioner David Cohen said he believes that violence is under control in Jerusalem, in reponse to warnings that clashes would break out during Friday's Muslim prayers in the city. Earlier Friday, the Islamist Palestinian organization Hamas declared Friday a "day of rage" and called on its supporters to come out and demonstrate at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, on Temple Mount. The call came Thursday, following days of tension at the Temple Mount compound as Palestinian protesters sporadically clashed with Israeli police patrolling the holy site. Leading religious figures in the Muslim world, such as Sheikh Yousuf al-Qaradawi, dubbed Friday "protect Al-Aqsa day." Joining the call to "protect" the mosque were Palestinian politicians and religious figures, who have been trying to convince the lethargic public in Gaza to come out and demonstrate. Israel's Islamic Movement also joined the calls, urging Muslims within Israel to attend Friday's prayer at Al-Aqsa. The movement explained that they do not intend to confront anyone, but that prayer at the mosque is a basic right which they have no intention of relinquishing. In efforts to curb the violence, Israel has instituted restrictions on worshippers entering the compound, allowing men only over 50 years of age to enter. However, no restriction has been placed on women. Consequently, thousands of women arrived at the Temple Mount compound on Thursday in organized buses from Arab towns across Israel, and a similar showing was expected on Friday. A spokesperson for the Islamic Movement in Israel told Haaretz that the tension at the site has been created by Israeli police, which has deployed an unprecedented presence around the mosque and in East Jerusalem in general. "We repeat," he said. "The Al-Aqsa Mosque is a holy place for Muslims and no one else has any right or ownership over it." The Islamic movement has asked not to address comments made recently by Rabbi Yosef Sholom Elyashiv, the nonagenarian leader of the Lithuanian sect of the ultra-Orthodox Ashkenazi community, who told President Shimon Peres that Jews should not make pilgrimages to the Temple Mount so as not to evoke global outrage. "According to halacha (Jewish religious law), it is forbidden to ascend to Temple Mount," Rabbi Yosef Sholom Elyashiv is quoted by Israel Radio as telling President Shimon Peres. "I've said this in the past, and I am once again repeating this statement that Jews are forbidden to go up to the site," Elyashiv said. The Islamic Movement responded to these remarks Thursday, saying that "we don't need halacha quoted by this rabbi or another. We derive our legitimacy from the Koran and from the words of the prophet Mohammed." The Islamic Movement also criticized the indifference displayed by Muslim nations in the face of the clashes in Jerusalem. In a flyer the group disseminated, titled Al-Aqsa will be victorious, they said that anyone who harms Al-Aqsa is disrespecting every Muslim, wherever they are, and that despite the indifference and the incitement against the group and its leaders, the mosque will ultimately prevail. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #3 And unlike today's exciting RAB narrative, there are no reports of the police injuring themselves in the foot/leg/knee due to premature rock release in retaliation..... |
| Posted by: USN, Ret. 2009-10-10 22:32 |
| #2 Rabbi Yosef Sholom Elyashiv Carries a shiv, does he. |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2009-10-10 14:14 |
| #1 I have never understood why the Israellis don't just shoot the stone throwers. One rock incoming, one slug returning, is my motto, stones are deadly. |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2009-10-10 13:45 |