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| Shooting attack at Jerusalem holy site forces cancellation of Friday prayers | Shooting attack at Jerusalem holy site forces cancellation of Friday prayers |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Three gunmen have been shot dead during a shootout at the entrance to the flashpoint Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif complex in Jerusalem, during an attack in which two Israelis were critically wounded. | Three gunmen have been shot dead during a shootout at the entrance to the flashpoint Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif complex in Jerusalem, during an attack in which two Israelis were critically wounded. |
| Some reports in the Israeli media suggested the attackers were Israeli Arabs, citizens of the town of Umm al-Fahm, although that was not immediately confirmed by police. | Some reports in the Israeli media suggested the attackers were Israeli Arabs, citizens of the town of Umm al-Fahm, although that was not immediately confirmed by police. |
| In the immediate aftermath of the incident the area was cleared of visitors and closed, with police announcing that Muslim Friday prayers, usually attended by thousands, would be cancelled for the first time in 17 years. | In the immediate aftermath of the incident the area was cleared of visitors and closed, with police announcing that Muslim Friday prayers, usually attended by thousands, would be cancelled for the first time in 17 years. |
| According to first reports by Israeli police, the three assailants, armed with two homemade Carlo submachine guns and a hand gun, shot at several police officers near the Lion’s Gate entrance to the site, before running into the compound. | According to first reports by Israeli police, the three assailants, armed with two homemade Carlo submachine guns and a hand gun, shot at several police officers near the Lion’s Gate entrance to the site, before running into the compound. |
| “When they saw policemen they shot towards them and then escaped towards one of the mosques in the Temple Mount compound,” police spokesman Luba Samri said. “A chase ensued and the three terrorists were killed by police.” | “When they saw policemen they shot towards them and then escaped towards one of the mosques in the Temple Mount compound,” police spokesman Luba Samri said. “A chase ensued and the three terrorists were killed by police.” |
| Dramatic video footage of the incident showed the later part of the gunbattle as it took place within the confines of the compound. The shaky footage shows a number of figures dressed in dark clothes running across the compound and a fierce exchange of gunfire in one of the apparent attackers falls to the ground. | |
| At one stage the footage appears to show one of the assailants on the ground, who leaps up again as police approach before being shot. | |
| Police said the three attackers were killed by security forces. The Israeli ambulance service Magen David Adom said two of the Israelis wounded were receiving life-saving treatment. | Police said the three attackers were killed by security forces. The Israeli ambulance service Magen David Adom said two of the Israelis wounded were receiving life-saving treatment. |
| Israeli authorities are still working to identify the attackers, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said. The suspicion that the attackers were Israeli citizens of Palestinian origin was raised by documents found on the bodies, including identity cards and a driving licence, which police were checking to see if they were genuine. | |
| The site, which houses the al-Aqsa Mosque, Islam’s third-holiest site, and the seventh-century Dome of the Rock, is also revered by Jews as the site of the historic Temple. Jews are permitted to visit but not pray at the site, a prohibition supported by the mainstream Jewish Halakhic tradition. The site is managed under a long-standing arrangement with the Jordanian-supported Islamic institution known as the waqf. | |
| The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said in the aftermath of the attack that he would not change prayer rights at the site, despite calls by far-right politicians who sought to exploit the shooting. | |
| The deputy defence minister, Eli Ben Dahan of the far-right Jewish Home party, had earlier called for Israel to “bolster its rule and control over the [holy sites], and to ensure that all Jews can pray there at any time in safety”. A second Jewish Home MP, Moti Yogev, called for the compound to be “closed to Muslim [worshipers] for a long time.” | |
| Netanyahu rejected the calls. “It was decided to shutter the Temple Mount today for security reasons. Searches will be carried out to ensure that there are no more weapons on the Temple Mount. The status quo on the Temple Mount will be preserved,” he said in a statement. | |
| The Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Sheikh Muhammad Hussein, told Palestinian news agencies he had been prevented him from entering the complex. “We insist on reaching Al-Aqsa mosque and performing prayers there. The occupation preventing us from praying marks an assault against our right to worship in this pure Islamic mosque,” he said. | |
| The incident comes ahead of a reported move by the Israeli government to allow Israeli MPs – who are currently not allowed to go to the flashpoint site – to visit the Temple Mount on a trial basis. | |
| Israel’s public security minister Gilad Erdan said: “The terror attack today is a severe and dire event in which all red lines have been crossed. The attack is still under investigation and will force us to look into existing security arrangements at Temple Mount and in its vicinity. | Israel’s public security minister Gilad Erdan said: “The terror attack today is a severe and dire event in which all red lines have been crossed. The attack is still under investigation and will force us to look into existing security arrangements at Temple Mount and in its vicinity. |
| “I call on all public figures to do all in their power to calm the situation and keep the peace,” he added. | “I call on all public figures to do all in their power to calm the situation and keep the peace,” he added. |
| A wave of Palestinian street attacks that began in 2015 has slowed but not stopped. Since September 2015, Palestinian attackers have killed 43 Israelis, two visiting Americans and a British tourist. | A wave of Palestinian street attacks that began in 2015 has slowed but not stopped. Since September 2015, Palestinian attackers have killed 43 Israelis, two visiting Americans and a British tourist. |
| In that time, Israeli forces have killed more than 254 Palestinians, most of them said by Israel to be attackers. | In that time, Israeli forces have killed more than 254 Palestinians, most of them said by Israel to be attackers. |