Israel seeks to turn Palestine issue into religious war: PLO
The Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) says Israel seeks to foment a religious war amid escalation of violence at the al-Aqsa Mosque.
The PLO Secretary General Saeb Erekat said in a statement on Sunday that the Israeli regime is “enthusiastically trying to turn the question of Palestine into a religious war.”
He said that the recent surge in attacks on Palestinians praying at the mosque in the occupied East al-Quds (Jerusalem) would not be tolerated, calling on the international community “to assume responsibility to protect the Palestinian people and their holy sites.”
In recent days, Israeli soldiers have attacked and injured tens of Palestinian youths in rallies held against Tel Aviv’s military assaults on the mosque, which started on September 13.
The recent wave of violence has seen Israeli settlers and soldiers attacking Palestinian worshipers following the deployment of Israeli troops to the area for the Jewish Rosh Hashanah New Year Holiday.
Last week, Israeli Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein authorized the use of sniper fire by military forces, declaring “war against Palestinian stone-throwers and firebomb throwers” in occupied Palestinian territories.
The Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations Riyad Mansour has condemned the UN Security Council for failing to take action over the recent Israeli aggression.
Last month, Israel imposed harsh restrictions on entries into the al-Aqsa Mosque, which limits the entry of Palestinians into the compound.
The al-Aqsa Mosque is Islam’s third holiest site after Masjid al-Haram in Mecca and Masjid al-Nabawi in Medina, Saudi Arabia. Its compound is also highly respected by Jews and Christians.
Palestinians are seeking to create an independent state on the territories of the West Bank, including East al-Quds and the Gaza Strip, and are demanding that Israel withdraw from the occupied Palestinian territories. Israel, however, has refused to return to borders before a 1967 war and is unwilling to discuss the issue of al-Quds.
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