Watchdog groups warned that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah party, the terror group Hamas, and a major international Muslim organization are stoking the flames.
According to a translation by Palestinian Media Watch (PMW), Fatah said in a statement “in the name of All Merciful Allah,” that “the Fatah Movement with all its elements and leadership calls to continue this uprising and stand against the occupation forces, the settlers, and their terrorist organizations that are working with the support of the right-wing fascist Israeli government.”
At their meeting in Brussels on Monday , EU Foreign Ministers discussed the postponed Palestinian elections and the situation in Jerusalem.
‘’Today – which is, by the way, Jerusalem Day – is a very sensitive moment. We are deeply concerned over the recent clashes and violence, including again this morning in and around the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount,’’ said EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell in remarks to journalists after the meeting.
He said that ‘’all sides must uphold and fully respect the status quo of the holy sites. And all leaders have a responsibility to act against extremists,’’ Borrell said.
He called the decision of the Israeli authorities to stop Jewish worshippers from accessing the Temple Mound ‘’a positive one that can calm the situation.’’
But he also said that ‘’the situation with regard to the evictions of Palestinian families in Sheikh Jarrah and other areas of East Jerusalem is a matter of serious concern.’’
‘’ Such actions are illegal under international humanitarian law and only serve to fuel tensions on the ground. It is important that everything possible will be done to avoid fuelling tensions,’’ he added.
The case of Sheikh Jarrah is a complex and long-running legal matter, subject to competing property claims by Jewish owners and Palestinian tenants over a small area of land in Jerusalem. The affair also incorporates the area’s religious significance and spans a history dating back to pre-1948 British mandate era. The case has been subject to legal proceedings since 1972, and is currently before Israel’s Supreme Court, where a final decision is expected in the next month.
Borrell’s remarks came as Israel’s annual Jerusalem Day, which celebrates the reunification of the city after the 1967 Six-Day War. was overshadowed Monday by rocket sirens and explosions as Hamasn, the terrorist group which governs the Gaza Strip, claimed responsibility for striking the country’s capital and targets across the south, while the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it bombed a number of the terrorist group’s positions in the Gaza Strip in response.
By Monday night over 150 rockets had been launched from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory, at least dozens of which have been intercepted by Israel, according to the IDF.
The IDF said that it had detected seven rockets launched from the Gaza Strip at the Jerusalem area, at least one of which was intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system. In response, the IDF said it attacked a number of Hamas targets, including two rocket launchers, two military positions and eight of the terrorist group’s operatives.
Jerusalem has been the site of a number of days of violence as Palestinians clashed with Israeli police forces across the capital and around the Temple Mount ahead of the annual Jerusalem Day. This year the march coincides with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Violence had also erupted in recent days in response to the tension around the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of eastern Jerusalem, where a number of Palestinian families are set to be evicted in an ongoing court case.
Watchdog groups warned that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah party, the terror group Hamas, and a major international Muslim organization are stoking the flames.
According to a translation by Palestinian Media Watch (PMW), Fatah said in a statement “in the name of All Merciful Allah,” that “the Fatah Movement with all its elements and leadership calls to continue this uprising and stand against the occupation forces, the settlers, and their terrorist organizations that are working with the support of the right-wing fascist Israeli government.”
The statement appeared to call for mass violence and possibly terrorism, saying ostensible Israeli malfeasance “will lead to a comprehensive confrontation in all the Palestinian lands, including a reexamination of the rules of engagement with the occupation and a reexamination of all kinds of connection with the Israeli government.”
The statement called for “everyone to raise the level of confrontation,” especially on Monday, which has seen the most severe violence thus far.
The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), found that incitement to mass violence has not been confined to the Palestinians, but has taken on an international dimension.
On Friday, the International Union of Muslim Scholars (IUMS), which is financially supported by Qatar and Turkey, issued a sermon that quoted an antisemitic passage from the Quran that states, “Judgement Day will not come until the Muslims fight the Jews, and the Jews will hide behind trees and stones.” It added, “The young jihad fighters of Palestine are the best evidence of this, for they have given the Jews a taste of dread and rocked [the foundations of]their entity [the State of Israel]with their heroic jihad operations.”
“They took up a rifle in one hand and the Quran in the other, after holding the Quran as belief in their hearts and [adopting it]as a way of life,” the sermon said.
It then falsely claimed that thousands of “Zionist usurpers” were going to enter the al-Aqsa Mosque.
Hamas officials have also been calling for further violence, with Political Bureau Member and former Minister of the Interior Fathi Hammad saying, “People of Jerusalem, we want you to cut off the heads of the Jews with knives.”
In addition to this, the Islamic Movement continued its efforts to incite Arab communities in the north of Israel.
Speaking at at the Jerusalem Day ceremony held at Ammunition Hill, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “We are in a struggle that is spreading across several fronts: in Jerusalem, in Gaza and elsewhere in the country. The terrorist organizations in Gaza crossed a red line on Jerusalem Day evening and attacked us with missiles at the entrances to Jerusalem.”
“Israel will respond forcefully. We will not tolerate attacks on our territory, our capital, our citizens and our soldiers. Whoever attacks us will pay a heavy price,” he added. “The current conflict may continue for some time.”
At the same ceremony, President Reuven Rivlin said that the “wail of the sirens in Jerusalem a short time ago is still with us. Repeated code red alarms that disrupt normal daily lives in the south, right now too, are putting our dear ones in the south of the country, the Gaza envelope that envelopes our whole country, into their safe rooms.”
“We will not be bowed in the face of any threat. Let nobody challenge the lethal might of our forces. Do not put them to the test,” Rivlin added.
According to the Israeli media, the security cabinet gave the IDF a green light to hit targets throughout the Gaza Strip following the attacks.
“In the next few days, Hamas will feel the long arm of the [Israeli] army. It won’t take a few minutes, it will take a few days,” IDF Spokesperson Hidai Zilberman said.
In response to attacks from Gaza into Israel, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas tweeted: “All sides have a duty to prevent further civilian casualties.”
Emmanuel Giaufret, the EU ambassador to Israel, tweeted: ‘’Extremely concerned by today’s violence in East Jerusalem. The firing of rockets from Gaza to Israel is totally unacceptable and needs to stop. We need immediate deescalation to step back from the brink and protect civilians.’’
