Politics
22:06, 07-Dec-2017
Hundreds more Israeli police deployed ahead of main Muslim prayers
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Israel deployed hundreds of additional police officers on Friday following Palestinian calls for protests after the main weekly Muslim prayers against US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.
"Several hundred additional police and border police have been deployed inside and in the vicinity of the Old City," police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said.
The situation was calm early Friday in Jerusalem's Old City, the location of the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, the third holiest site in Islam and where thousands typically attend the main weekly prayers.
Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, which runs the Gaza Strip, was calling for a "day of rage" on Friday and protests were expected over Trump's move on Wednesday recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital.
Hundreds of Palestinians clashed with Israeli troops who deployed tear gas and stun grenades in Jerusalem, December 7, 2017. /Reuters Photo
Hundreds of Palestinians clashed with Israeli troops who deployed tear gas and stun grenades in Jerusalem, December 7, 2017. /Reuters Photo
The disputed city lies at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with both sides seeing it as their capital.
Seventeen people were wounded by Israeli army gunfire on Thursday, when Palestinian protests erupted in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
In the West Bank cities of Hebron and Al-Bireh, thousands of demonstrators rallied with chants of "Jerusalem is the capital of the State of Palestine," witnesses said. Some Palestinians threw stones at soldiers.
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Source(s): AFP
,Reuters