Israeli Police Enter al-Aqsa Mosque Compound
Israeli police briefly entered the flashpoint al-Aqsa mosque compound after Friday prayers and fired tear gas towards stone-throwing youths, police and mosque officials said.
"After prayers some of the Arab youths started throwing stones," a Jerusalem police spokeswoman said.
"There were no injuries but when the stone throwing continued, police and border police entered the mosque compound to disperse the youths before leaving."
Police fired tear gas and one person was arrested, she said.
A spokesman for the Islamic authorities that run the mosque said one or two youths had been throwing stones, but the incident ended quickly.
The sprawling mosque compound contains the al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock and is the third holiest site in Islam after Mecca and Medina.
It is also the holiest site in Judaism because it was the location of the Second Temple, razed by the Romans in 70 AD.
Source: Agence France Presse
| Copyright © 2012 Naharnet.com. All Rights Reserved. | https://naharnet.com/stories/en/8074 |