The arbitrarily imposed restrictions placed on Palestinian Muslims accessing the holy place in Jerusalem for prayer have been in effect for more than four months.
The restrictions are implemented through the excessive and threatening force of Israeli Occupation Forces around the entry areas to Old City, where the Al Aqsa Mosque is located, particularly during prayers on Friday.
Worshippers have reacted with steadfastness to those who are part of the occupation’s denying of their right to pray in the streets near their homes in the Old City and Al Aqsa Mosque located in the Palestinian area that is Wadi Al Joz.
The occupiers seem to see this as an act of terror of the highest level and one that cannot be accepted, and they respond with brutal force.
For Friday’s (12th Jan.) prayer, twenty-five worshippers set up prayer mats on the side of a street in Wadi Al Joz in a serene, calm, and respectful manner.
But, in just about two minutes, IOF soldiers were seen rushing down the road towards them with guns and heading toward the Old City. The tear gas was directed at worshippers, causing them to renounce their prayer and move further into the neighborhood, being pursued by their enemies and a skunk vehicle, which is a weapon that was used to combat its unpleasant smell.
The IOF did not stop ISM volunteers, most Israeli activists, and the media from observing and documenting the events. However, ISM recognizes that, in the efforts to snare worshipers, which illustrates how absurd the actions of the occupation forces and conduct – IOF soldiers sprayed a lot of teargas, including inside the homes of residents, before removing them from the area.
IOF brutality in service of imposing a collective penalty upon those in the Palestinian Muslim community in East Jerusalem won’t dissuade the Al Aqsa faithful. They have endured this for the past four months, and every Friday, they continue to fight.
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