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| At Least 2 Palestinians Are Killed Amid Jerusalem Protests | At Least 2 Palestinians Are Killed Amid Jerusalem Protests |
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| JERUSALEM — At least two Palestinians were killed in East Jerusalem on Friday as clashes broke out over Israel’s placement of metal detectors at entrances to the sacred Aqsa Mosque compound. | JERUSALEM — At least two Palestinians were killed in East Jerusalem on Friday as clashes broke out over Israel’s placement of metal detectors at entrances to the sacred Aqsa Mosque compound. |
| The clashes came as thousands of Palestinian Muslims prayed in front of police barricades in the streets around the Old City of Jerusalem after a tense, weeklong standoff over the metal detectors and other restrictions. | The clashes came as thousands of Palestinian Muslims prayed in front of police barricades in the streets around the Old City of Jerusalem after a tense, weeklong standoff over the metal detectors and other restrictions. |
| The Palestinian Health Ministry identified the dead as Muhammad Mahmoud Sharaf, 17, who was said to have been shot by an Israeli settler in the mostly Palestinian neighborhood of Ras al-Amud in East Jerusalem, and Muhammad Abu Ghanam, who was apparently shot by Israeli security forces in the At-Tur neighborhood of East Jerusalem, which is on the Mount of Olives. | The Palestinian Health Ministry identified the dead as Muhammad Mahmoud Sharaf, 17, who was said to have been shot by an Israeli settler in the mostly Palestinian neighborhood of Ras al-Amud in East Jerusalem, and Muhammad Abu Ghanam, who was apparently shot by Israeli security forces in the At-Tur neighborhood of East Jerusalem, which is on the Mount of Olives. |
| The metal detectors were introduced after a brazen attack on the morning of July 14, when three armed Arab citizens of Israel emerged from Al Aqsa Mosque and shot dead two Israeli Druze police officers who were guarding an entrance to the compound. The assailants ran back inside the courtyard and were killed by other officers, who had pursued them. | |
| In a rare move, after the attack, Israel temporarily closed the contested and volatile holy site, revered by Jews as the Temple Mount and by Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary, and emptied it of all workers while the police conducted searches. | |
| The Israeli government’s decision to introduce metal detectors when the site reopened rapidly became a source of friction and a symbolic rallying cry in the contest for control and sovereignty over the sacred compound. In an extraordinary turn, members of the Waqf, the Muslim trust that administers the site, called for a boycott of prayers there for as long as the metal detectors remained in place. | |
| According to the Israeli police, only a few dozen worshipers entered the compound for prayers on Friday. Earlier in the day, bracing for a possible eruption of violence, the police announced that only men over the age of 50 would be allowed access. (There were no age restrictions on women.) | |
| On a regular Friday, the number of Muslims entering the site can reach tens of thousands. This week, the police turned back busloads of worshipers heading to the city from other parts of the country. | |
| “The metal detectors are a political issue,” said Jamal Zahalka, an Arab member of the Israeli Parliament, outside the Old City on Friday. “They have them all over the world, in supermarkets, shopping malls, everywhere. But they are there by consensus, not imposed by somebody else.” | “The metal detectors are a political issue,” said Jamal Zahalka, an Arab member of the Israeli Parliament, outside the Old City on Friday. “They have them all over the world, in supermarkets, shopping malls, everywhere. But they are there by consensus, not imposed by somebody else.” |
| As tension built, the Israeli cabinet met into the night on Thursday. Ministers decided to leave the metal detectors in place, despite recommendations to remove them by the Shin Bet, Israel’s internal security service, and by other security organizations. | |
| “Israel is committed to preserving the status quo at the Temple Mount and the freedom of access to the holy places,” Israeli officials said in a statement after the cabinet meeting, adding: “The cabinet has authorized the Israel police to take any decision to ensure the freedom of access to the holy sites, while maintaining security and public order.” | “Israel is committed to preserving the status quo at the Temple Mount and the freedom of access to the holy places,” Israeli officials said in a statement after the cabinet meeting, adding: “The cabinet has authorized the Israel police to take any decision to ensure the freedom of access to the holy sites, while maintaining security and public order.” |
| Critics said that the government was evading responsibility for keeping the metal detectors in place by leaving the ultimate decision up to the police. The police issued a statement in the morning clarifying that entry to the site through metal detectors was “according to the decision of the highest political echelon,” and that the police would decide on how strict the security checks would be based on assessments of the situation. | Critics said that the government was evading responsibility for keeping the metal detectors in place by leaving the ultimate decision up to the police. The police issued a statement in the morning clarifying that entry to the site through metal detectors was “according to the decision of the highest political echelon,” and that the police would decide on how strict the security checks would be based on assessments of the situation. |
| Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel has come under pressure from right-wing members of his coalition, who urged him not to “cave in” to Palestinian protest and who said that removing the metal detectors would send a message of weakness and lack of resolve regarding Israeli control of the area. | |
| “The decision to leave the metal detectors at the entrance to the Temple Mount is the right decision,” Tzipi Hotovely, a deputy foreign minister from Mr. Netanyahu’s conservative Likud Party, wrote on Twitter on Friday. “The Prime Minister defended the national interest.” She also praised the Likud minister of public security, Gilad Erdan, for standing up to the Shin Bet on the issue. | “The decision to leave the metal detectors at the entrance to the Temple Mount is the right decision,” Tzipi Hotovely, a deputy foreign minister from Mr. Netanyahu’s conservative Likud Party, wrote on Twitter on Friday. “The Prime Minister defended the national interest.” She also praised the Likud minister of public security, Gilad Erdan, for standing up to the Shin Bet on the issue. |
| Israel captured East Jerusalem, along with its holy sites, from Jordan in the 1967 war and then annexed the area in a move that was never internationally recognized. Aware of the potentially explosive religious and political sensitivities, Israel allowed the Waqf to remain in charge of day-to-day affairs inside the mosque compound under the aegis of Jordan. Jordan’s special role in administering the site was reaffirmed in its 1994 peace treaty with Israel. | Israel captured East Jerusalem, along with its holy sites, from Jordan in the 1967 war and then annexed the area in a move that was never internationally recognized. Aware of the potentially explosive religious and political sensitivities, Israel allowed the Waqf to remain in charge of day-to-day affairs inside the mosque compound under the aegis of Jordan. Jordan’s special role in administering the site was reaffirmed in its 1994 peace treaty with Israel. |
| International efforts have been underway this week to resolve the metal detector crisis. The White House issued a statement this week saying the United States was “very concerned about tensions” surrounding the holy site and called on Israel and Jordan to make “a good-faith effort” to calm the atmosphere. | |
| Hanan Ashrawi, a senior Palestinian official, described the placement of metal detectors, as well as security cameras, at the entrances to the Aqsa Mosque as “a flagrant violation of the rights and freedoms of Palestinian Muslim worshipers.” “Such intrusive and dehumanizing practices,” she said in a statement, “aim to provide Israel with carte blanche to exercise security control over the holy sites of Jerusalem.” | Hanan Ashrawi, a senior Palestinian official, described the placement of metal detectors, as well as security cameras, at the entrances to the Aqsa Mosque as “a flagrant violation of the rights and freedoms of Palestinian Muslim worshipers.” “Such intrusive and dehumanizing practices,” she said in a statement, “aim to provide Israel with carte blanche to exercise security control over the holy sites of Jerusalem.” |
| According to Israeli radio reports, protest marches were also held on Friday in Indonesia, Jordan, Lebanon, Malaysia and Turkey. | |
| Protests and clashes also took place in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, though a spokesman for the Palestinian security forces, Adnan Damiri, told Palestinian radio that marchers would be kept away from flash points where they might clash with Israeli forces. | Protests and clashes also took place in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, though a spokesman for the Palestinian security forces, Adnan Damiri, told Palestinian radio that marchers would be kept away from flash points where they might clash with Israeli forces. |
| Despite the deaths in East Jerusalem, the clashes on Friday were fairly limited in scope and largely contained by a massive deployment of Israeli security forces. | Despite the deaths in East Jerusalem, the clashes on Friday were fairly limited in scope and largely contained by a massive deployment of Israeli security forces. |