JERUSALEM — Hundreds of Palestinians were hurt during clashes with Israeli forces at a Jerusalem holy site on Monday on the anniversary of Israel’s capture of Jerusalem.
Around 215 Palestinians were injured in the violence, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society said, with some taken to area hospitals.
Nine Israeli policeman were wounded, and one received medical treatment, according to Israeli police.
Israeli police had banned Jews from entering the compound. Police said they were also considering whether to reroute a traditional Jerusalem Day march in which thousands of Israeli flag-waving Jews walk through the city, including the Muslim Quarter in the Old City.
The injured on Monday included a 7-month-old Israeli baby, who was hit in the head with a stone and is now under observation in the pediatric emergency room, Hadassah Hospital spokesperson Hadar Elboim said. In total, the hospital treated five people, all in mild condition.
The violence comes after dozens of people were seriously injured Friday at the mosque compound ahead of a special evening prayer held during the holy month of Ramadan.
The Red Crescent Society said that Israeli forces used rubber bullets on Palestinians on Monday and that medics were denied access to injured people inside the mosque.
The site, holy to both Muslims and Jews, is known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary, and to Jews as the Temple Mount. During the Muslim holy month of Ramadan worshipers often sleep inside the mosque.
According to Israeli police, the clashes began when Palestinian protesters threw stones at a gate that leads down to the Western Wall, where thousands of Jews had gathered to pray. The police then ordered forces to push back the protesters, police said.
“Extremist Palestinians planned well in advance to carry out riots today on the Temple Mount,” Ofir Gendelman, a spokesman for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tweeted, along with photos of piles of rocks.
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Israeli police released video of Palestinians throwing rocks at Israeli forces outside the mosque.
A spokesperson for the mosque said that the clashes began when police tried to evacuate the compound to allow Israelis in. Israel provides security for the compound, while neighboring Jordan manages the ceremonial and religious aspects of the complex.
“We were expecting from yesterday that the police will attack Al-Aqsa Mosque,” said spokesperson Awni Bazbaz. “Around 8 a.m. this morning the police started going into the compound to evacuate the worshipers inside the mosque and the compound. They started attacking immediately.”
Tensions in Jerusalem have been heightened throughout the month of Ramadan after Israel blocked off a popular spot where Muslims traditionally gather each night at the end of their daylong fast. Israel later removed the restrictions, but clashes continued.
The violence also came ahead of a crucial court case in a long-running legal battle involving the homes of four Palestinian families on land claimed by Jewish settlers in the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah. Israel’s Supreme Court postponed a key ruling Monday, citing the “circumstances.”
Israel captured east Jerusalem, along with the West Bank and Gaza, in a 1967 Six-Day war with its Arab neighbors. Israel views the entire city as its capital and annexed east Jerusalem, a move not recognized by the majority of the international community. Palestinians want east Jerusalem, along with the West Bank and Gaza, as part of a future Palestinian state.
Netanyahu voiced his support for Israeli forces on Monday and said at a state memorial service for Ethiopian Jews that Israel was “working to ensure freedom of worship and tolerance for all.”
“This is not a task we can perform without confrontation from time to time,” he said.
In another violent incident Monday, Palestinian protesters threw rocks at an Israeli vehicle and its driver that was driving just outside the Old City walls. In a video released by Israeli police, the driver appeared to lose control and slammed into a bystander.
The clashes in Jerusalem came as Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired rockets into Israel, and launched incendiary balloons, setting off fires across the southern part of the country.
Lawahez Jabari reported from Jerusalem; Paul Goldman reported from Tel Aviv and Rachel Elbaum reported from London.