Jerusalem (agencies)
The Jerusalem Endowments Directorate confirmed that about 250,000 people performed the second Friday prayer of the month of Ramadan in Al-Aqsa Mosque, with Israel continuing to ease the conditions for entering the city.
Since the early morning hours of yesterday, Friday, thousands of Palestinians flocked to the city through many military checkpoints surrounding it, as Jerusalem is surrounded by a concrete wall and barbed wire.
The Israeli police deployed many of its elements on the roads leading to Al-Aqsa Mosque in the Old City of Jerusalem, and closed many roads to cars to facilitate the arrival of the large number of buses to the vicinity of the Old City. And Sheikh Muhammad Hussein, the Mufti of Jerusalem and the Palestinian lands, said in the Friday sermon: “Your march on this blessed day to the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque in the blessed month of Ramadan gathers credit for it in all its aspects.”
And he added: “The Holy Ramadan is blessed, the Al-Aqsa Mosque is the home of the blessed Isra and Mi’raj, and the second Friday of this holy month is blessed, so congratulations to your gathering and congratulations to you on this blessed and auspicious fast.” Israel allowed women of all ages, men over the age of 55, and children under the age of 12 from the West Bank to enter Jerusalem without permits to perform Friday prayers on the occasion of the month of Ramadan. Ramadan constitutes an opportunity for many Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza Strip to visit the city of Jerusalem and pray in Al-Aqsa Mosque, and for some of them this is their first visit to the city. And Israel built a wall around Jerusalem during the past years, so entry to it is only through huge iron gates.
In normal times, Palestinian residents of the West Bank and Gaza Strip require special permits, which are rarely granted.
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