Lebanese Hezbollah praises ‘heroic’ al-Aqsa Mosque operation

Israeli police check the scene and surround a dead body (in foreground), where three Palestinians fired shots toward Israeli forces on the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in the Old City of occupied Jerusalem al-Quds on July 14, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

The Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement has hailed the “heroic" operation conducted by three Palestinians at the entrance to the al-Aqsa Mosque late last week, which left two Israeli police officers dead in a gun battle in the mosque compound.

“The operation attests that the spirit of resistance is rooted in the hearts of Palestinians, and underscores their emotional bonds to the occupied al-Aqsa Mosque, where the fight against Occupation (Israel) originates. Palestinian fighters tend to sacrifice all they have in order to liberate their lands, and restore their dignity,” a statement issued by the movement read on Monday.

The Palestinian Hamas and Islamic Jihad resistance movements also condemned the Israel regime’s acts of aggression against al-Aqsa Mosque in a joint statement, stressing that such moves will not go unanswered.

“The Occupation’s daily assaults will eventually set the Middle East on flames, and plunge the entire into a sectarian war. We had earlier warned against the Zionist regime’s plots and insidious acts, and called upon competent authorities to intervene and pressure Israelis over halting their sacrilegious actions, excavations and assaults on [the] al-Aqsa Mosque compound. Nevertheless, no one took the warnings seriously and that led to the status quo,” the joint statement read.

The two Palestinian resistance movements later called on ordinary Palestinians, scholars, clergymen and veteran prisoners to join hands and spare no efforts to save the holy site.

Israeli border guards detain a Palestinian teenager during a demonstration outside the Lions’ Gate, a main entrance to the al-Aqsa Mosque compound, due to newly-implemented security measures by Israeli authorities which include metal detectors and cameras, in the Old City of occupied Jerusalem al-Quds on July 17, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

Tensions remains high three days after a deadly shooting attack outside an entrance to al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem al-Quds.

On Monday, Palestinians performed prayers outside the al-Aqsa Mosque compound to show their opposition to the installation of metal detectors at the site’s entrances.

Dozens of Muslim worshipers, all Palestinian residents of occupied East Jerusalem al-Quds, refused to pass through the detectors and gathered for dawn and afternoon prayers outside the Lions' Gate.

The Palestinians, both men and women, denounced the installation of the metal detectors as violation of their right to freely enter the mosque and practice religious rituals.

Palestinian Muslim worshippers, who refuse to enter the al-Aqsa mosque compound due to newly-implemented security measures by Israeli authorities which include metal detectors and cameras, pray outside the Lions’ Gate, a main entrance to the al-Aqsa Mosque compound, in the Old City of occupied Jerusalem al-Quds on July 17, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

The occupied Palestinian territories have witnessed new tensions ever since Israeli forces introduced restrictions on the entry of Palestinian worshipers into the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East Jerusalem al-Quds in August 2015.

More than 300 Palestinians have lost their lives at the hands of Israeli forces in the ongoing tensions since the beginning of October 2015.

The Tel Aviv regime has tried to change the demographic makeup of Jerusalem al-Quds over the past decades by constructing settlements, destroying historical sites and expelling the local Palestinian population. Palestinians say the Israeli measures are aimed at paving the way for the Judaization of the city.

The al-Aqsa Mosque compound is a flashpoint Islamic site, which is also holy to Jews. The mosque is Islam’s third holiest site after Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.