Palestinian Violence on Temple Mount Spills Over to Western Wall, Wounding Elderly Jewish Woman

Jerusalem (TPS) – In a controversial decision, the Jerusalem police announced on Tuesday morning that the Temple Mount will be closed to Jews and to tourists until the end of Ramadan, following violent clashes between Muslim rioters and police forces this week. However, Palestinians continued to hurl stones even after this announcement, wounding a 73-year-old Jewish woman praying at the Western Wall which sits at the foot of the Temple Mount.

Since Sunday, young masked Palestinians have been gathering rocks, fireworks and other weapons during the night inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque in an attempt to to harm Jews at the holy site and prevent them from entering in the morning. Over the last years such riots have become standard during the last ten days of Ramadan, the Muslim holy month during which worshipers fast during the day.

The Temple Mount, located in Jerusalem’s Old City, is the holiest site in Judaism though Jewish access to the site is severely restricted. The site is also the third holiest to Muslims, who refer to it as Haram al-Sharif or as the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.

These rocks were prepared today by Palestinian rioters on #TempleMount to throw at people visiting the Western Wall. pic.twitter.com/ZH2EXqny6m

— Ofir Gendelman (@ofirgendelman) June 28, 2016

Following the Palestinian violence in previous days the police decided to close the contested holy site to all non-Muslims, including Jews. The police statement said the ban is to last until the end of the week, but a sign at the entrance to the site said the ban was in effect until the end of Ramadan on Wednesday next week.

Several Israeli lawmakers voiced their opposition to the decision.

“[Public Security] Minister Gilad Erdan decided to close the Temple Mount to Jews and tourists because of Arab violence. Excuse me, but wasn’t it supposed to be the other way around?” wrote MK Shuli Mualem from the national-religious Jewish Home party on Twitter.

Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat also criticized the decision, saying that “decisions must not be made under threat of violent riots.”

Despite the ban on Jews, violence at the holy site continued even after this announcement. Having stocked up on rocks and other objects during the night once again, Palestinian rioters clashed with police forces and threw rocks at Jewish worshipers at the nearby Western Wall compound. The decision was also met by celebratory chants from the masked rioters.

A 73-year-old woman at the Western Wall was wounded from the rock throwing and was treated at the scene by Magen David Adom (MDA) medics. The woman suffered a head wound and was transported to Hadassah Ein Kerem hospital fully conscious and in light condition.

“The police is rewarding terror, and is punishing law-abiding Jews instead of punishing the violent Arab rioters,” said MK Nava Boker from Prime Minister Netanyahu’s Likud party. “A tragedy was miraculously avoided today when a rock thrown at the Western Wall ‘only’ wounded a woman. If we do not figure out how to deal with the rioters, next time there will be no miracles.”

Police forces pushed the rioters back, and began searching for the terrorists who threw the rocks at the Jewish worshipers. The forces arrested 17 individuals including an official in the Jordanian Waqf, the police announced, for involvement in the riots and the rock-throwing.

“The police views the disruption of order and rock-throwing at civilians and police forces severely, and will act strictly and forcefully to execute judgement with the rioters,” said a statement by the Jerusalem Police. “We are prepared to prevent the continuation of the order disruption with large forces throughout Jerusalem, especially in the Old City and Temple Mount.”

The Jordanian Minister of Media Affairs, Mohammad Momani, issued a statement on what he called the “Israeli violations on the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound”, calling on Israel to “immediately halt them and respect the status quo,” Jordanian media reported. Momani called on the international community “to hold Israel accountable for their actions and to pressure Israel to comply with international conventions.”

The statement added that Jordanian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh had contacted Israeli officials, expressing Jordan’s “condemnation and utter rejection of the provocative Israeli practices,” demanding that they should be stopped immediately.

Five Muslims were arrested on Sunday morning for causing a public disturbance and obstructing policemen at the Temple Mount during Jewish and tourist entrance hours. The Muslim youths, some of whom were wearing masks, were yelling and taunting the Israeli visitors who continued to remain on the Temple Mount despite the disturbances.

MK Yehuda Glick, who survived an assassination attempt in 2014 for his Temple Mount activism, also responded to the decision to close the mount to Jews. “The past year proved that when we deal decisively with the violent extremists and inciters on the Temple Mount, the quiet is preserved,” he said. “I call on the Muslim leadership to show responsibility and understand that it is mainly them who will be hurt by the violence and terror.”

“The many tourists and Jews wishing to enter the holy mount cannot become hostages again and again in the hands of a violent mob, incited by extremist Muslim clerics,” added Glick.