Israel restricts Muslim access to Al-Aqsa for 18th week in a row

Israeli forces take security measures as the Palestinians perform Friday prayers on a street, Dome of the Rock of Masjid Al-Aqsa is seen on the back, at Ras Al-Amud neighborhood in Jerusalem on February 09, 2024. [Mustafa Alkharouf – Anadolu Agency]

Israeli restrictions have prevented tens of thousands of Palestinian Muslims from attending Friday prayers at Al-Aqsa Mosque for the 18th week in a row since Tel Aviv launched its genocidal war on Gaza.

Eyewitnesses told Anadolu that the mosque seemed almost empty of Muslim worshippers due to Israeli restrictions.

Israeli occupation forces have imposed restrictions on entering Al-Aqsa Mosque since 7 October, but they are particularly strict on Fridays. Barriers have been set at the entrances to the Old City and at the outer gates of Al-Aqsa Mosque and only the elderly have been allowed to pass through.

Israeli restrictions forced hundreds of worshippers to perform prayers in the streets near the Old City.

Read: Israel still carrying out ethnic cleansing in the Gaza Strip, West Bank and Jerusalem, says UN

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