News Agencies – Palestinians in recent days have protested in solidarity with residents of East Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood with Israeli police firing tear gas and rubber bullets at protesters, Middle East Monitor reports.
The protests came as the Israeli Central Court in East Jerusalem approved a decision to evict seven Palestinian families from their homes in favour of Israeli settlers at the beginning of this year.
Israeli police attempted to disperse worshippers inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound Friday evening, using stun grenades and gas bombs.
The reaction to the situation in Jerusalem came from all around the world.
The Arab League plans to hold an extraordinary meeting on Monday 10 May, to discuss the escalation of violence in East Jerusalem.
The Middle East Quartet – Russia, the US, the EU and the UN – has expressed concerns over recent violence in East Jerusalem that led to the death of around 300 Palestinians, Sputnik News reported.
“We call upon Israeli authorities to exercise restraint and to avoid measures that would further escalate the situation during this period of Muslim Holy Days. We call on all sides to uphold and respect the status quo at the holy sites. All leaders have a responsibility to act against extremists and to speak out against all acts of violence and incitement. In this context, the Quartet Envoys reiterated their commitment to a negotiated two state solution,” the Quartet said in a Saturday statement.
Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement on the situation in East Jerusalem. “Moscow is deeply concerned over the unfolding events [mounting tensions in East Jerusalem]. We resolutely condemn the attacks on civilians. We call on all sides to refrain from any steps fraught with the escalation of violence,” the ministry stated on Saturday.
Turkish President in a statement issued early Sunday urged the world to take effective action against Israeli attacks on Al-Aqsa, Jerusalem and Palestinian homes, Anadolu Agency reports. “Jerusalem is the world itself. And the Muslims there are humanity itself,” President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Twitter.
Saeed Khatibzadeh, spokesman of the Iranian Foreign Ministry made remarks condemning the attack of Israel against Palestinian worshipers and Al Aqsa Mosque. “Islamic Republic of Iran calls on the United Nations and all related international bodies to do their duty that is taking measures against this war crime”, Khatibzadeh stated.
Axios states that the US State Department officials spoke to their Israeli and Palestinian counterparts on Friday night and asked them to de-escalate the situation in Jerusalem and the West Bank, U.S. and Israeli officials said.
EU also condemned situation in East Jerusalem and called for de-escalation of tensions: “Violence and incitement are unacceptable and the perpetrators on all sides must be held accountable. The European Union calls on the authorities to act urgently to de-escalate the current tensions in Jerusalem,” a spokesman said in a statement, AFP reported.
