12 aug 2019
|
|
Israeli police injured dozens of Palestinians praying at the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem on Sunday, the first day of Eid al-Adha or Feast of the Sacrifice.
The Muslim holiday this year coincides with the Jewish holiday of Tisha B’Av, which in Jewish belief commemorates the destruction of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem. The Islamic Waqf – the body responsible for Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem – announced on Friday that only the al-Aqsa mosque would open its doors for prayers in Jerusalem on the first day of the holiday. Israel initially closed the al-Aqsa mosque compound, which Jews call the |
Temple Mount and Muslims call al-Haram al-Sharif, for Jewish worshippers on Sunday, as is the norm, to avoid clashes with Muslim worshippers.
Israel regularly imposes tight closures on all Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip for days during Jewish holidays.
Israel then reversed its decision, allowing more than 1,700 Jewish Israelis to enter the compound under the protection of occupation forces: tweet, video tweets
Israel fired tear gas canisters, stun grenades and rubber-coated steel bullets at Palestinian worshippers in the compound.
This video shows Israeli forces firing rubber-coated steel bullets at Palestinians: Local media circulated pictures and videos showing Israeli forces attacking Palestinian worshippers: This video shows Palestinians, including children, running from Israeli forces:
Fifteen Palestinians were hospitalized and seven arrested.
Gradual takeover
Jewish religious authorities backed the ban on Jewish worshippers from entering the compound during the Tisha B’Av holiday out of religious principles.
“Jews are strictly prohibited from entering Temple Mount according to Jewish law, and it would be best if they avoid from entering the complex all year long,” Yitzhak Yosef, one of Israel’s two chief rabbis, stated.
This reflects the longstanding position of Israel’s official rabbinate.
But Jewish nationalist groups with close links to the government defy this position.
Activists from the so-called Temple movement encourage Jews to go to al-Aqsa, using such incursions as steps toward a gradual takeover of the site by settlers.
“It seems the Arabs are going to win over the battle to open Temple Mount to Jews on Tisha B’Av,” an activist with the movement told Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
“When hundreds of thousands of Jews arrive at Temple Mount, no one will be able to prevent the building of the Temple,” another said.
The ultimate aim of the movement – openly declared by many of its adherents – is the destruction of the al-Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock and their replacement with a Jewish temple.
However, Temple movement activists often obscure this goal and claim they merely want more access for Jews to pray at the site, framing the matter as an issue of equality and civil rights.
But as The Electronic Intifada’s Ali Abunimah told Al Jazeera English on Sunday, “you can’t have civil rights under military occupation when Palestinians have no civil rights, no human rights.”
“The thing I would ask [Likud lawmaker] Yehuda Glick, which I don’t see too many journalists doing, why have you and your Temple movement published blueprints for this Jewish temple, which will be built on the ruins of al-Aqsa mosque?” Abunimah added.
Glick is a leader of the Israeli-government backed Temple movement.
United States envoy Jason Greenblatt tweeted in support of Israeli settlers.
“Don’t let anyone claim Israel is ‘judaizing’ the City of Jerusalem,” Greenblatt stated. tweet
Israel’s strategic affairs minister Gilad Erdan celebrated the decision to allow Jewish Israelis into the compound to “strengthen Israeli sovereignty on the mount.”
Such comments expose how Israel’s real agenda is to use Jewish worship at the site as a cover and alibi for its illegal annexation of occupied East Jerusalem.
Condemnations
Jordan – the custodian of holy sites in Jerusalem – condemned Israeli violence against Palestinian worshippers.
Foreign minister Ayman Safadi said that “attempts by the occupying authorities will not change the status quo of occupied Jerusalem.”
Safadi warned that Israel’s violations of the holy site could lead to an “explosion” in the already volatile situation.
Jordan called on the international community to pressure Israel to halt its provocations.
The Palestinian Authority also called for international action.
Settler organization strengthens hold
Meanwhile, the Greek Orthodox Church filed a lawsuit with an Israeli court last week seeking to overturn leases of Jerusalem properties to a settler organization.
The 99-year leases are for three prime properties near Jaffa Gate. They were given to Ateret Cohanim, a right-wing organization involved in Israeli settlement on Palestinian land in Jerusalem.
In June, the Israeli high court ruled in favor of the settler organization, giving the greenlight for it to take over the properties.
The church claims to have new evidence of corruption including bribes between the settler group and church officials involved in the leases, Haaretz reported.
Previously, Ateret Cohanim claimed to have bought the church land in 2004 from Ireneus I, the Greek Orthodox patriarch at the time.
The Greek Orthodox Church has subsequently taken over the site but Ateret Cohanim is now trying to seize the land that it says it bought over a decade ago.
Ireneus I claims his ousting was not legal and still identifies as the patriarch.
Theophilos III, the current patriarch, has rejected the sale that his predecessor approved, saying it involved corruption.
Israel regularly imposes tight closures on all Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip for days during Jewish holidays.
Israel then reversed its decision, allowing more than 1,700 Jewish Israelis to enter the compound under the protection of occupation forces: tweet, video tweets
Israel fired tear gas canisters, stun grenades and rubber-coated steel bullets at Palestinian worshippers in the compound.
This video shows Israeli forces firing rubber-coated steel bullets at Palestinians: Local media circulated pictures and videos showing Israeli forces attacking Palestinian worshippers: This video shows Palestinians, including children, running from Israeli forces:
Fifteen Palestinians were hospitalized and seven arrested.
Gradual takeover
Jewish religious authorities backed the ban on Jewish worshippers from entering the compound during the Tisha B’Av holiday out of religious principles.
“Jews are strictly prohibited from entering Temple Mount according to Jewish law, and it would be best if they avoid from entering the complex all year long,” Yitzhak Yosef, one of Israel’s two chief rabbis, stated.
This reflects the longstanding position of Israel’s official rabbinate.
But Jewish nationalist groups with close links to the government defy this position.
Activists from the so-called Temple movement encourage Jews to go to al-Aqsa, using such incursions as steps toward a gradual takeover of the site by settlers.
“It seems the Arabs are going to win over the battle to open Temple Mount to Jews on Tisha B’Av,” an activist with the movement told Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
“When hundreds of thousands of Jews arrive at Temple Mount, no one will be able to prevent the building of the Temple,” another said.
The ultimate aim of the movement – openly declared by many of its adherents – is the destruction of the al-Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock and their replacement with a Jewish temple.
However, Temple movement activists often obscure this goal and claim they merely want more access for Jews to pray at the site, framing the matter as an issue of equality and civil rights.
But as The Electronic Intifada’s Ali Abunimah told Al Jazeera English on Sunday, “you can’t have civil rights under military occupation when Palestinians have no civil rights, no human rights.”
“The thing I would ask [Likud lawmaker] Yehuda Glick, which I don’t see too many journalists doing, why have you and your Temple movement published blueprints for this Jewish temple, which will be built on the ruins of al-Aqsa mosque?” Abunimah added.
Glick is a leader of the Israeli-government backed Temple movement.
United States envoy Jason Greenblatt tweeted in support of Israeli settlers.
“Don’t let anyone claim Israel is ‘judaizing’ the City of Jerusalem,” Greenblatt stated. tweet
Israel’s strategic affairs minister Gilad Erdan celebrated the decision to allow Jewish Israelis into the compound to “strengthen Israeli sovereignty on the mount.”
Such comments expose how Israel’s real agenda is to use Jewish worship at the site as a cover and alibi for its illegal annexation of occupied East Jerusalem.
Condemnations
Jordan – the custodian of holy sites in Jerusalem – condemned Israeli violence against Palestinian worshippers.
Foreign minister Ayman Safadi said that “attempts by the occupying authorities will not change the status quo of occupied Jerusalem.”
Safadi warned that Israel’s violations of the holy site could lead to an “explosion” in the already volatile situation.
Jordan called on the international community to pressure Israel to halt its provocations.
The Palestinian Authority also called for international action.
Settler organization strengthens hold
Meanwhile, the Greek Orthodox Church filed a lawsuit with an Israeli court last week seeking to overturn leases of Jerusalem properties to a settler organization.
The 99-year leases are for three prime properties near Jaffa Gate. They were given to Ateret Cohanim, a right-wing organization involved in Israeli settlement on Palestinian land in Jerusalem.
In June, the Israeli high court ruled in favor of the settler organization, giving the greenlight for it to take over the properties.
The church claims to have new evidence of corruption including bribes between the settler group and church officials involved in the leases, Haaretz reported.
Previously, Ateret Cohanim claimed to have bought the church land in 2004 from Ireneus I, the Greek Orthodox patriarch at the time.
The Greek Orthodox Church has subsequently taken over the site but Ateret Cohanim is now trying to seize the land that it says it bought over a decade ago.
Ireneus I claims his ousting was not legal and still identifies as the patriarch.
Theophilos III, the current patriarch, has rejected the sale that his predecessor approved, saying it involved corruption.
Telegrass co-founder and CEO Amos Silver
New channel on Telegram messaging app pops up after Israel's serious crimes unit cracks down on predecessor Telegrass; one of founders vows never to stop selling cannabis via the internet 'until it is fully legalized'
A massive police crackdown earlier this year won't stop the online sale of marijuana in Israel, one of the operators of the new GetWeed channel on the instant messaging app Telegram told Ynet on Monday.
Police officers from the Lahav 433 serious crimes unit in March raided the homes of 42 suspects alleged to have a connection with the online drug-dealing network Telegrass, which operated as a channel on Telegram.
Potential buyers could contact individual sellers through a private chat faciliated by the channel and arrange their own drug purchases.
The head of the Telegrass network, Amos Dov Silver, was arrested at the same time in Ukraine and is currently under house arrest there.
One month later, the Cyber Unit at the State Prosecutor's Office indicted 27 people in the case.
The indictment accuses suspects of brokering the trafficking of dangerous drugs, trafficking dangerous drugs, drug offenses involving the corruption of minors, money laundering and more.
Despite the police crackdown, Telegrass is still going strong on Telegram and one of the alternative platforms - GetWeed - is also thriving. The name appears to be a riff on the popular cab-ordering app formerly known as GetTaxi.
A senior source from the platform told Ynet that GetWeed operates similarly to Telegrass, and will continue to run clandestinely until "there is full legalization of cannabis in Israel."
"We are almost the same as Telegrass in terms of idea and structure," he said. "We use very creative technologies in order to protect our staff and dealers' information."
New channel on Telegram messaging app pops up after Israel's serious crimes unit cracks down on predecessor Telegrass; one of founders vows never to stop selling cannabis via the internet 'until it is fully legalized'
A massive police crackdown earlier this year won't stop the online sale of marijuana in Israel, one of the operators of the new GetWeed channel on the instant messaging app Telegram told Ynet on Monday.
Police officers from the Lahav 433 serious crimes unit in March raided the homes of 42 suspects alleged to have a connection with the online drug-dealing network Telegrass, which operated as a channel on Telegram.
Potential buyers could contact individual sellers through a private chat faciliated by the channel and arrange their own drug purchases.
The head of the Telegrass network, Amos Dov Silver, was arrested at the same time in Ukraine and is currently under house arrest there.
One month later, the Cyber Unit at the State Prosecutor's Office indicted 27 people in the case.
The indictment accuses suspects of brokering the trafficking of dangerous drugs, trafficking dangerous drugs, drug offenses involving the corruption of minors, money laundering and more.
Despite the police crackdown, Telegrass is still going strong on Telegram and one of the alternative platforms - GetWeed - is also thriving. The name appears to be a riff on the popular cab-ordering app formerly known as GetTaxi.
A senior source from the platform told Ynet that GetWeed operates similarly to Telegrass, and will continue to run clandestinely until "there is full legalization of cannabis in Israel."
"We are almost the same as Telegrass in terms of idea and structure," he said. "We use very creative technologies in order to protect our staff and dealers' information."
A suspected member of Telegrass in court
"It is a kind of technology that is yet to be seen even on the world's biggest darknet websites," he said. "Let's say that if we went out with it (the technology) overtly and legally, we would have been raising tens of millions (of shekels)."
The source even provided details on the way in which the network operates.
"The dealers go through rigorous verification with their personal details and also have a convenient and easy-to-use review bot," he said.
"We currently have over 3,200 reviews on 140 verified dealers all across Israel and around 1,000 dealers are still waiting to be verified. Of course, this number grows daily."
Israel Police said in a statement that there was it would continue to target drug dealers in whatever format they operated.
"Israel Police sees the drug phenomenon as a dangerous and unacceptable social phenomenon, which could lead to criminal behavior, including severe cases of violence," the statement said.
"This is why the police vigorously enforces drug trafficking and distribution offenses through a variety of overt and covert actions in order to expose the perpetrators and bring them to justice.
"This is proactive enforcement focused on exposing drug offenses, whether committed on a street corner, at a border crossing or online."
"It is a kind of technology that is yet to be seen even on the world's biggest darknet websites," he said. "Let's say that if we went out with it (the technology) overtly and legally, we would have been raising tens of millions (of shekels)."
The source even provided details on the way in which the network operates.
"The dealers go through rigorous verification with their personal details and also have a convenient and easy-to-use review bot," he said.
"We currently have over 3,200 reviews on 140 verified dealers all across Israel and around 1,000 dealers are still waiting to be verified. Of course, this number grows daily."
Israel Police said in a statement that there was it would continue to target drug dealers in whatever format they operated.
"Israel Police sees the drug phenomenon as a dangerous and unacceptable social phenomenon, which could lead to criminal behavior, including severe cases of violence," the statement said.
"This is why the police vigorously enforces drug trafficking and distribution offenses through a variety of overt and covert actions in order to expose the perpetrators and bring them to justice.
"This is proactive enforcement focused on exposing drug offenses, whether committed on a street corner, at a border crossing or online."
The Arab League has strongly denounced the Israeli aggressive practices at the Aqsa Mosque following the Eid al-Adha prayers on Sunday in Occupied Jerusalem.
In a statement, Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit said that the events that happened at the Aqsa Mosque at the behest of the Israeli government reflected “a systematic Israeli policy aimed at normalizing the Jewish presence in al-Haram al-Sharif and reducing the Muslim presence there, even on the holy days when Eid prayers are performed.”
Aboul Geit held the Israeli government responsible for its serious escalation of the situation at the Aqsa Mosque in order to please extremist Jewish groups, warning that Israel’s reckless and barbaric policies would fuel the flames of fanaticism in the region and threaten to ignite a religious strife in the occupied city of Jerusalem.
He appealed to the international community to stand in the face of the Israeli Judaization campaign taking place in Jerusalem under political cover from the US administration.
In a statement, Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit said that the events that happened at the Aqsa Mosque at the behest of the Israeli government reflected “a systematic Israeli policy aimed at normalizing the Jewish presence in al-Haram al-Sharif and reducing the Muslim presence there, even on the holy days when Eid prayers are performed.”
Aboul Geit held the Israeli government responsible for its serious escalation of the situation at the Aqsa Mosque in order to please extremist Jewish groups, warning that Israel’s reckless and barbaric policies would fuel the flames of fanaticism in the region and threaten to ignite a religious strife in the occupied city of Jerusalem.
He appealed to the international community to stand in the face of the Israeli Judaization campaign taking place in Jerusalem under political cover from the US administration.
