Jerusalem During Eid: Attacks, Arrests, and Ongoing Closure of Al-Aqsa
Violations in Jerusalem persisted throughout the Eid al-Fitr holiday, involving ongoing attacks and increased security. This period also saw the continued closure of Al-Aqsa Mosque amidst the Israeli-American conflict against Iran, limiting Palestinians' ability to freely practice their religion. Additionally, there were arrest campaigns and harassment targeting dozens of young men.
On the first day of Eid, Israeli forces used stun grenades and batons to disperse worshippers in the Herods Gate area near the Old City before the Eid prayer. After the prayer, they also chased young men in Wadi al-Joz as they recited the Eid takbirs, attacking them.
On Friday, the first day of Eid, Israeli forces detained five young Palestinian men from Jerusalem and across the Palestinian 1948 lands.
Occupation authorities turned Jerusalem into a military zone, with forces heavily deployed on the streets, especially near the Old City. They guarded all its gates to prevent access, and Al-Aqsa Mosque stayed closed during the Eid holiday, stopping Palestinians from performing Eid prayers there. Instead, Palestinians held Eid prayers in the streets and alleyways of Jerusalem, and the sound of takbirs filled the city, despite the mosque's closure.
On the second day of Eid, Ahmad Hamed Bkeirat was compelled to demolish his house in Sur Baher, south of Jerusalem, following an order from the Israeli municipality issued late in Ramadan. He was given ten days to comply, with the threat that if he did not, the demolition would be carried out at his own expense. The 80-square-meter house had been standing for ten years.
Israeli forces have continued to pursue Palestinians under the claim of "illegal" entry into Jerusalem. Recently, they arrested dozens of individuals in the Atarot industrial zone, at the Hizma checkpoint, and near the Har Homa settlement (Jabal Abu Ghneim), with the total detainees exceeding one hundred young men.
On the third day of Eid, settlers targeted residents in the Wadi Hilweh neighborhood in Silwan, insulting and physically attacking two boys playing with a toy gun. Later that afternoon, Israeli forces entered the Batn al-Hawa neighborhood, assaulting residents with batons, pushing them, and spraying pepper spray at a young boy.
On the eve of Eid, Israeli forces detained Sheikh Raed Salah in Jerusalem. He was later released with the condition of deportation from the city for two weeks, according to his lawyer, Khaled Zabarqa. The lawyer explained that the arrest was related to Salah's visit to Sheikh Ekrima Sabri and attending an Iftar at a Jerusalem family's home.
In the same context, authorities arrested Mohammad Adli Abu Sneineh from Beit Hanina and Fadi Al-Jabrini. They also issued a six-month ban from Al-Aqsa Mosque and a two-week ban from the Old City for Islam Mustafa.
