Israel-Palestine news: Chaos as Israelis rally in East Jerusalem
Latest updates: Tensions high in occupied East Jerusalem where thousands of ultra-nationalist Jewish groups march chanting ‘death to Arabs’.
Published On 29 May 2022
- Thousands of far-right Israelis have stormed Damascus Gate in occupied East Jerusalem to mark the so-called flag march in the old city.
- The march is held to mark what Israelis call the day of unifying Jerusalem, in reference to Israel’s occupation of the city in 1967 and subsequent annexation which is not internationally recognised.
- Israeli ultra-nationalist groups have chanted racist slogans such as “Death to Arabs”, as they marched through the streets of the old city.
- Israeli forces have dispersed Palestinian protesters after a splinter group of Jewish nationalists started waving flagd inside Al-Aqsa Mosque.
- Some Jewish worshippers also prayed at the mosque compound violating a longstanding agreement in place since 1967.
- Dozens of Palestinians have been injured in the occupied West Bank amid confrontations between Palestinians and armed Israeli soldiers, medics say.
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Israel approves far-right march in occupied East Jerusalem
Attacks in Burin, occupied West Bank: report
Israeli settlers have attacked the village of Burin, south of Nablus in occupied West Bank, local sources told WAFA news agency. The attackers threw Molotov cocktails, WAFA reported, adding that there were no injuries.
Earlier in the day, Israeli forces fired tear gas towards Palestinian protesters at the Israeli-controlled Hawara checkpoint, further south from Burin.
In Pictures: Tensions high as far-right Israelis march in East Jerusalem
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Clashes still ongoing in Sheikh Jarrah: AJ correspondent
While tensions at Jerusalem’s Damascus Gate have calmed down, clashes are still taking place in Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, Al Jazeera’s Imran Khan reported, adding that Israeli settlers were attacking Palestinian homes in that area.
Khan also noted that politics was the reason behind Israeli ultra-nationalist groups being allowed to go through the Damascus Gate for the first time in many years.
“A lot of those ultra-nationalist groups support Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and that’s how he keeps his very fragile coalition together,” Khan said.
“It may have not been a quid-pro-quo deal with the ultra-nationalist groups, but had he stopped them from going through the Damascus Gate, he would have lost a lot of political support,” he added.
Illegal settlers attack Palestinian homes in Sheikh Jarrah
A group of illegal Israeli settlers have attacked several Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood, Wafa news agency reported.
Palestinian resident Amin Burqan was quoted as saying that the attack coincided with the “[Israeli] occupation forces’ raid into the al-Sumoud refugee camp” in the neighborhood.
Dozens of Palestinian homes were attacked with stones, vehicles were vandalised, and “live bullets” were fired towards them, he said.
Meanwhile in Jerusalem’s Shuafat refugee camp, Israeli forces fired rubber-coated bullets, stun grenades, and tear gas canisters towards crowds.
Israeli forces arrest 56 Palestinians in East Jerusalem, West Bank
The Palestinian Prisoners Club has announced that 56 Palestinians have been arrested by Israeli forces in Jerusalem and other areas in the West Bank.
More than 140 injuries reported in West Bank
The Red Crescent has said that its team members dealt with more than 140 injuries in the occupied West Bank. Some 18 of these injuries were a result of live bullets fired by Israeli forces.
Israeli flag march ‘an expression of the apartheid regime’
The so-called flag march is an expression of the Israeli apartheid regime, Munir Nuseibah, a professor at Al-Quds University in Jerusalem, told Al Jazeera.
“A regime that allows these ultra-right wing people to go through the streets of the Old City and to chant racist slogans against the Arabs, against the Muslims, against the Prophet Muhammad; to use violence against the people, even people who were inside their homes,” Nuseibah said.
“I heard today from one of my colleagues that they sprayed pepper spray…through the windows into homes as they marched. While at the same time, simultaneously, we saw how the Israeli police suppressed Palestinians who were trying to raise the Palestinian flag.”
Jordan condemns Israeli politician’s presence in Al-Aqsa Mosque compound
Jordan has condemned Israeli far-right politician Ben-Gvir’s visit to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound – one of the holiest sites in Islam – and warned that the “provocative and escalating march” could make things deteriorate further.
Jordan controlled East Jerusalem until Israel captured and later annexed it in 1967. Jordan remains the custodian over Muslim holy sites.
Palestinian president, PM, condemn flag march and warn of consequences
Nabil Abu Rdeneh, spokesman for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, has accused Israel of “playing with fire irresponsibly and recklessly”.
Meanwhile, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh condemned the march, and “attacks on Palestinian citizens in the occupied city of Jerusalem”, Wafa news agency quoted him as saying.
He warned of the dangerous repercussions of the march and its provocations of the feelings of Palestinian citizens.
Shatyyeh also called on the international community to “intervene urgently to stop the violations against the holy places in the city of Jerusalem”.
Tens of injuries reported in and around West Bank city of Nablus
Al Jazeera’s Nida Ibrahim, reporting from the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah, said tens of Palestinians have been injured by Israeli forces in and around Nablus.
The Red Crescent announced that the “majority of injuries are by suffocation of tear gas”, Ibrahim said.
“It’s very, very heavy tear gas that usually the Israeli army uses,” she added.
“And the rest of the injuries … one Palestinian has been moved to hospital after being shot by live ammunition to his leg, while four people were injured by rubber-coated steel bullets,” Ibrahim said, adding that confrontations have been unfolding in several places.
Ultra-nationalist Jews stormed Al-Aqsa ahead of Israeli flag march
Hundreds of far-right Jewish nationalists entered Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, ahead of a provocative flag march that could re-ignite confrontations between Israelis and Palestinians.
Israeli forces have fired rubber bullets at Palestinian protesters in the compound, in an effort to disperse them.
Read more here.
Generation of ‘indoctrinated young Israelis’ in Jerusalem: Analyst
Marwan Bishara, Al Jazeera’s senior political analyst, said the scenes from occupied East Jerusalem are telling of the “future generation of Israel” and the serious concerns that should raise for peace and security.
“This is a generation of indoctrinated young Israelis who have been taught to hate the Palestinians, to hate the Arabs,” Bishara said.
“They are almost genocidal in their education and their upbringing…they want to take over all of historic Palestine, and they want to push the Palestinians out. They believe all of historic Palestine is theirs.”
Jewish groups chant ‘death to Arabs’
Thousands of Israeli ultra-nationalists, some of them chanting “Death to Arabs”, paraded through the heart of the main Palestinian thoroughfare in occupied Jerusalem’s Old City on Sunday during the so-called flag march.
The crowds of overwhelmingly young Orthodox Jewish men gathered outside Damascus Gate, waving flags, singing religious and nationalistic songs, and shouting “the Jewish nation lives” before entering the Muslim Quarter.
One large group chanted “Death to Arabs” and “Let your village burn down” before descending into the Old City.
Israeli police clear Palestinians out
“The crowds of overwhelmingly young Orthodox Jewish men gathered outside Damascus Gate, waving flags, singing religious and nationalistic songs, and shouting “the Jewish nation lives” before entering the Muslim quarter of the old city,” Al Jazeera’s Imran Khan said.
“One large group chanted ‘Death to Arabs’, and ‘Let your village burn down’ before descending into the Old City,” Khan reporting from Old Jerusalem said.
“Police cleared Palestinians out of the area, which is normally a bustling Palestinian thoroughfare,” he added.
Israeli far-right parade
Each year, thousands of Israeli far-right groups participate in the parade, waving Israeli flags and singing songs as they pass through the narrow streets of the Old City’s Muslim Quarter.
The march is meant to celebrate Israel’s capture of occupied East Jerusalem in the 1967 war. Israel subsequently annexed the area in a move that is not internationally recognised.
Palestinians, who have been forced to shutter their businesses and stay indoors, view the march as a blatant provocation as Jewish settlers flaunt their sovereignty over the occupied territory.
Source: Al Jazeera and news agencies