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Israel prohibited this Tuesday, April 11, Jewish visitors and tourists from entering the Al-Aqsa Mosque, located in East Jerusalem, until the end of Ramadan. Meanwhile, the Israeli army has reported shooting and killing two Palestinian gunmen in the occupied West Bank.
A security measure in a high voltage context. Israel on Tuesday, April 11, prohibited Jewish visitors and tourists from entering the Al-Aqsa Mosque, located in East Jerusalem, until the end of the holy month of Ramadan for Muslims. Separately, the Israeli army reported that it shot and killed two Palestinian gunmen in the occupied West Bank, illustrating ongoing tensions.
The Israeli government’s decision regarding Al-Aqsa comes after interventions and attacks by the country’s Police to evict hundreds of pilgrims from the mosque last week led to the firing of rockets at the Jewish state from Gaza, Lebanon. and Syria. The Israeli Army responded with air strikes.
In a statement issued by his office, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had made the decision, after a meeting on security, to suspend visits to Al-Aqsa Mosque for non-Muslims until the end of Ramadan. , which is expected around April 20.
The Palestinian authorities did not immediately comment on this decision, already taken by Israel in the past.
The Israeli Minister of National Security, the ultranationalist Itamar Ben-Gvir, denounced this measure. “When terrorism strikes us, we must respond with great force, not give in to its whims,” he said in a statement.
In a context of escalating tensions between Israelis and Palestinians for a year, this Ramadan period was even more feared because this year it coincided with Pesaj, the Jewish Passover.
Two Palestinians from the armed wing of Fatah killed by the Israeli Army
Separate from Netanyahu’s announcement, the Israeli military said two armed Palestinians traveling in a vehicle opened fire at a military post near a Jewish settlement near Nablus in the occupied West Bank.
The Israeli army added that it opened fire and “neutralized two assailants” who fired from their vehicle in the direction of the Elon Moreh military position, located near the Palestinian city of Nablus.
In the pursuit of other suspects, the soldiers discovered several weapons in the area, including two M-16s, according to a military statement, which specifies that there were no injuries in the military ranks.
The Palestinian Health Ministry identified the two men as Saud Abdallah Saud al-Titi and Mohammad Ghazi Abu Dhraa, killed by Israeli bullets in Deir al-Hatab.
In a statement, the Fatah movement said they belonged to its armed wing, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, and that they were from the Balata refugee camp in Nablus.
“I congratulate the soldiers who eliminated two terrorists who opened fire on them near Elon Moreh,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant wrote on Twitter. “The soldiers prevented an attack on Israeli civilians,” he added, praising “a successful operation.”
With Reuters and AFP
This article was adapted from its original in French.
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