More than 150,000 Palestine worshippers attend Al-Aqsa Mosque Friday prayer

Palestinians wave national and Islamic flags inside Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque complex following prayers of the third Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, on April 22, 2022 [AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP via Getty Images]

More than 150,000 Palestinian worshippers, mostly from Jerusalem, the occupied West Bank and Israel, attended Friday prayer at Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site in Islam, reported the Islamic Waqf Authority.

This came despite Israeli occupation police restrictions, including the closure of many roads leading to the Old City of Jerusalem, forcing worshippers to use longer routes to reach the holy site.

Over 150 Palestinians injured as Israeli police storm Al-Aqsa – Cartoon [Sabaaneh/Middle East Monitor]

The Israeli occupation army also deployed many troops at the gates leading to Al-Aqsa Mosque, inspecting worshippers’ IDs and conducting body searches.

Wafa News Agency reported that the Israeli police tightened security measures around the holy site, however, prayers took place peacefully.

Thousands of Palestinians prayed at Israeli checkpoints leading to Jerusalem from the West Bank, after being blocked from entering the holy city.

Prior to Friday prayer, tens of worshippers inside Al-Aqsa Mosque were injured in an Israeli raid on the holy site.

The attack was the latest in a series of daily attacks that started on 15 April, as the Israeli occupation forces used brutal force against Muslim worshippers to evacuate the holy site to make way for Israeli radicals to celebrate Passover.

READ: 31 Palestinians injured in another Israeli police raid at Al-Aqsa Mosque

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