Fifteen policemen and 20 Palestinians were injured today in
violent clashes that broke out on the Temple Mount precincts and the Western
Wall in Jerusalem. Dozens of police had to enter the Temple Mount area after
Palestinians threw stones at the Western Wall plaza during prayers held to
commemorate the destruction of the Jewish Temple, remembered today, the
9th of Av in the Jewish calendar.
Shortly after midday, hundreds of Palestinians marched in
procession towards the western side of the Temple Mount. The stewards, members
of the Palestinian Authority security forces, took no steps to bar their way,
and the Palestinians began to hurl stones towards the Western Wall plaza.
The police rapidly evacuated the hundreds of Jewish worshippers
from the plaza. At the same time, dozens of police and border guards burst onto
the Temple Mount, firing stun and tear-gas grenades at the rioters. They quickly
gained control of the area.
The clashes on the Temple Mount followed a ceremony held earlier
by members of the Temple Mount Faithful movement on the Western Wall plaza. As
in previous years on this day, they attempted to gain entry to the Temple Mount.
They also transported a large stone weighing several tons to the area of the Old
City from West Jerusalem, near the US consulate. The stone, meant to represent
the corner stone of the third Temple, was quickly removed back to its original
site.
The rabbi of the Western Wall, Shmuel Rabinovitz, criticized the
evacuation of Jewish worshippers from the Western Wall plaza at the height of
the 9th of Av prayers, saying more effective ways could have been
found to ensure their safety. He also criticized the Temple Mount Faithful,
describing their call to set the corner stone for the temple “a practical
joke”.
Published by Israel's Business Arena on 29 July,
2001