A Palestinian militant was killed in clashes with Israeli forces in the West Bank yesterday, a few hours after Israeli police dispersed Palestinian stone-throwers at a gate to Jerusalem’s Old City that has been a frequent flashpoint for rapidly escalating tensions.
The Islamic Jihad group said that Abdullah al-Hossari was shot dead in a confrontation that erupted when Israeli special forces entered the Jenin refugee camp in the northern West Bank.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health said that another man was seriously wounded.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Local Palestinian media said that the dead man was a member of the Jenin Brigade, a newly formed group affiliated with Islamic Jihad.
In August last year, Israel released al-Hossari from detention after 26 months.
There was no immediate response from the Israeli military.
Islamic Jihad is a pro-Iran Palestinian group. Its top political leaders are based in Syria and Lebanon, with some prominent officials in Gaza, where it is the second-largest armed group after Gaza’s ruling Hamas.
In Jerusalem on Monday, Israeli police fired stun grenades, rubber bullets and water cannons to disperse stone-throwers.
Palestinian medics said that 33 Palestinians were injured, including an 11-year-old girl hit in the face by a stun grenade.
Police detained 20 Palestinians and said that four police officers were hurt.
The confrontation erupted at the Damascus Gate as large crowds streamed through the arched passage toward the Old City’s Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.
People marked what Muslims believe is the Prophet Mohammed’s ascension to heaven.
It was not immediately clear what sparked the clashes on Monday.
The area around the Damascus Gate has been a scene of confrontations, including during last year’s Ramadan, when Muslims fast from dawn to dusk.
At the time, police prevented Palestinians from gathering at the Damascus Gate after breaking their daily fast, disrupting a long-standing practice.
Nightly clashes erupted, with tensions rapidly spreading and triggering a two-week war between Israel and Hamas.
Ramadan, a time of heightened religious fervor, is to start this year at the beginning of next month.
Muslim religious officials administering the Al-Aqsa Mosque area estimated that about 90,000 people attended Monday’s events.
The raised platform is revered by Jews as the Temple Mount, site of their Biblical temple. The compound’s Western Wall is the holiest site where Jews can pray.
The Old City is in east Jerusalem, which was captured by Israel in 1967 along with the West Bank.
About 700,000 Israeli settlers live in the two areas.
Palestinians seek both areas as parts of a future independent state.
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