Clashes at a Jerusalem holy site Sunday injured at least 14 Muslim worshippers and four Israeli police officers, according to the Associated Press.
The unrest began during prayers for the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Adha at the site, called the Al-Aqsa mosque compound by Muslims and the Temple Mount by Jews, according to the AP. Sunday was also the Ninth of Av in Judaism, which marks the biblical destruction of the two temples that once stood on the site.
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A large number of Palestinians gathered at the gates of the compound in response to rumors Jewish worshippers would be allowed in and threw stones at police, then Israeli officers charged the compound with rubber bullets and stun grenades, after which they allowed Jews to enter.
The decision to allow Jewish worshippers to enter was reached “with the backing of the top political officials,” Jerusalem District police commander Doron Yedid told Israeli media, according to the AP.
A longstanding agreement between Israeli and Palestinian officials bars Jews from praying at the compound, and Jewish religious tradition cautions against entering it, but Israeli nationalists have increasingly challenged the arrangement in recent years.
While Israel has long maintained that it has no plans to alter the agreement, Palestinians frequently raise concerns about the possibility of such a move, which they worry could come as a prelude to the Israeli government partitioning the site or taking it over, according to the AP. The site is the holiest in Judaism and the third-holiest in Islam.
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Senior Palestinian Liberation Organization leader Hanan Ashrawi accused Israel of “fueling religious tensions in Jerusalem” and said they were “fully responsible for its grave consequences,” according to the news outlet.
Israeli-Palestinian tensions in Jerusalem have been particularly high since 2017, when President TrumpDonald John TrumpScalise: Trump no more responsible for El Paso than ‘Bernie Sanders is for my shooting’ Bloomberg: Next generation of Democrats needs to ‘earn their spurs’ Bloomberg: McConnell may allow gun reform vote to boost reelection chances MORE announced the U.S. would recognize the city as the Israeli capital and announced the transfer of the U.S. embassy there.
The clashes came the same day that Israeli troops killed a Palestinian man they said opened fire on them across the perimeter fence around the Gaza Strip, according to the AP. The Palestinian Health Ministry has identified the man as Marwan Nasser.