Slaughterer zionist min. al-Aqsa visit sparks Palestinians anger

Palestinians in the city of East al-Quds (Jerusalem) have angrily reacted to a visit by Israel’s Minister of Housing and Construction Uri Ariel to the al-Aqsa Mosque.

Muslim worshipers at the al-Aqsa Mosque on Tuesday shouted slogans against the minister as he, accompanied by a number of settlers, entered the compound under armed guard.

“The Israeli housing minister, accompanied by 27 settlers, stormed the Al-Aqsa compound through the Al-Magharbah Gate as Israeli police looked on,” Turkish state-run Anadolu Agency news agency quoted Sheikh Azzam al-Khatib, the director-general of Muslim endowments and Al-Aqsa affairs, as saying.

The Israeli forces collected the identity cards of the Palestinian protesters.

The Israeli minister had earlier said that Tel Aviv plans to replace the al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site in the Muslim world, with a temple.

The remark infuriated Palestinians, who condemned the plan as desecration and part of the Israeli regime’s ongoing attempts to Judaize the al-Aqsa Mosque and East al-Quds.

In recent months, Israeli settlers have stepped up their attacks on the mosque. A move that led to violent confrontations between the two sides.

On February 7, clashes erupted between Palestinian worshippers and Israeli soldiers at the al-Aqsa Mosque when the Israeli troops stormed the holy site.

Israeli soldiers fired rubber bullets and stun grenades at the people who were praying at the mosque.

At least 20 people, including children, were wounded in the violence.

Eyewitnesses said Israeli forces also beat a number of women and arrested several Palestinians, mostly youths.