Palestinians clash with Israel police at Jerusalem holy site over metal detectors

Published 8:21 am Friday, July 21, 2017

JERUSALEM — Palestinians clashed with Israeli security forces near a contested Jerusalem shrine after Muslim worshippers massed outside for evening prayers on Thursday as tensions over the holy site escalated further.

Israel police spokeswoman Luba Samri said Palestinians hurled stones and glass bottles at officers after the prayers outside the site, referred to by Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and by Jews as the Temple Mount.

The Palestinian Red Crescent said it treated at least 22 people for injuries. Police said no officers were injured; they had no information about injured protesters.

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The Palestinians were protesting Israel’s placement of metal detectors at the entrance to the holy site after a deadly attack there last week in which three Israeli Arab gunmen killed two Israeli police officers before they were shot and killed at the entrance to the site.

Israel has defended the detectors as a necessary security measure, one it says is used routinely at holy sites around the world.

But Muslim clerics have called for mass protests at the site on Friday — unless the detectors are removed by then. International efforts have been underway to try and stave off a major conflagration.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his security chiefs were to discuss the situation late Thursday after he returned from visits to France and Hungary. The security services are reportedly divided over what to do about the detectors, given the rising tensions surrounding the site.

Earlier in the day, Israel’s public security minister, Gilad Erdan, insisted the detectors were essential to maintaining security. “The Israeli police needs these metal detectors so the security checks can give a proper response to the security considerations,” he said.