Occupation Forces Storm Al-Aqsa for Second Night in A Row
Dozens of armed Israeli officers entered the courtyards of the mosque while nearly 20,000 Palestinian worshippers were still performing the Ramadan Taraweeh night prayer.
Israeli forces fired rubber-coated bullets, tear gas and stun grenades at worshippers just before the prayer ended to disperse them and clear the mosque, eyewitness Firas al-Dibbs told Middle East Eye.
They also chased after people, beating them with batons and wounding some.
The raid on Wednesday started slightly earlier than the previous one on Tuesday, apparently in an attempt by Israeli forces to prevent worshippers from locking themselves inside the Qibli prayer hall.
Last night, hundreds of Palestinians barricaded themselves inside the Qibli hall - the building with the silver dome - to perform the contemplative prayer of Itikaf and avoid attempts by police to remove them.
Itikaf is a non-mandatory religious practice that is common during Ramadan, when worshippers stay inside mosques overnight to pray, reflect and recite the Quran.
Israeli forces later stormed the Qibli mosque and fired stun grenades and teargas into the thousand-year-old building, before they threw Palestinians to the ground, stomped on them, and bound their hands behind their backs. At least 400 people were arrested.
In Wednesday's raid, police also targeted the Qibli prayer hall and cleared it.
Earlier in the day, Israeli police limited the number of Palestinians allowed to enter the mosque, bringing the number of those who were able to attend the Taraweeh prayer down from 80,000 people on Tuesday to 20,000, according to Palestinian media.
Source: middleeasteye.net
