JERUSALEM: Mass prayer at al-Aqsa shrine in Jerusalem on the last Friday of Ramadan

Muslim worshipper gathered at Jerusalem's shrine to attend Friday prayers following clashes between Israeli security and Palestinians who tried to enter the city for prayers. Violence broke out between Palestinians and troops at West Bank checkpoints as worshippers attempted to cross to Jerusalem to attend the last Friday prayer during the hold Muslim month of Ramadan (October 20). Several hundred worshippers massed at a Bethlehem checkpoint in an attempt to reach Jerusalem's al-Aqsa shrine, the third holiest site for Muslims. Israeli soldiers and border policemen checked identification documents of the Palestinians who arrived at the checkpoint area and at some point began throwing stun grenades to disperse the crowd. At Qalandia checkpoint between Jerusalem and the West Bank city of Ramallah, Israeli soldiers checked identification documents of Palestinians travelling from Ramallah into Jerusalem. Israel boosted security in and around Jerusalem in a bid to prevent possible violent outbursts at Jerusalem's shrine, known as a flashpoint of violence in past years. A police spokesman said that men under the age of 40 were banned from entering the Old City of Jerusalem to attend the prayers. Israeli news websites reported that 150,000 worshippers attended the prayers at al-Aqsa.

ITN Source | October 20, 2006

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