JERUSALEM: Some 90 Palestinians were injured in the second night of the ongoing violent clashes with Israeli security forces in East Jerusalem, it was reported on Sunday. Sixteen of them were taken to hospital, Israeli radio reported, citing Palestinian medics.
An Israeli police spokesman said on Sunday morning that confrontations took place on Saturday night at the Damascus Gate, one of the entrances to the Old City, and around the holy site known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary, reports dpa nws agency. Several arrests were made, the spokesman added.
Near the Damascus Gate, Palestinian demonstrators threw stones, bottles and firecrackers at security forces, according to the police. Police used rubber bullets, tear gas and stun grenades, media reports said.
On Saturday, more than 90,000 devout Muslims had gathered in the Noble Sanctuary, where al-Aqsa Mosque is located, to pray on the last weekend before the fasting month of Ramadan ends.
The situation around the Old City and the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood had already escalated the previous night. Afterwards, there was talk of more than 200 people being injured, and police spoke of almost 20 security forces who had been injured.
The situation in the West Bank and in the Arab-dominated eastern part of Jerusalem has been tense since the beginning of the fasting month of Ramadan.
Many Palestinians are angry because Israeli police had cordoned off areas of the Old City to prevent gatherings.
In addition, some Palestinian families in Sheikh Jarrah are facing eviction from their homes by Israeli authorities, further heightening tensions. Police presence has been stepped up amid concerns about renewed violence on Israel's Jerusalem Day, which begins on Sunday evening.
Israel celebrates the conquest of the eastern half of Jerusalem during the 1967 Six-Day War on that day. The Palestinians see East Jerusalem as the capital of a future state of their own. (IANS)
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