2017 Temple Mount crisis
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The 2017 Temple Mount crisis was a period of violent tensions related to the
Temple Mount The Temple Mount ( hbo, הַר הַבַּיִת, translit=Har haBayīt, label=Hebrew, lit=Mount of the House f the Holy}), also known as al-Ḥaram al-Sharīf (Arabic: الحرم الشريف, lit. 'The Noble Sanctuary'), al-Aqsa Mosque compou ...
, which began on 14 July 2017, after a shooting incident in the complex in which Palestinian gunmen killed two Israeli police officers. Following the attack, Israeli authorities installed
metal detector A metal detector is an instrument that detects the nearby presence of metal. Metal detectors are useful for finding metal objects on the surface, underground, and under water. The unit itself, consist of a control box, and an adjustable shaft, ...
s at the entrance to the Mount in a step that caused large Palestinian protests and was severely criticized by Palestinian leaders, the Arab League, and other Muslim leaders, on the basis that it constituted a change in the " status quo" of the
Temple Mount entry restrictions Temple Mount entry restrictions are restrictions on entering the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif in Jerusalem, which is a holy place for Muslims, Jews, and Christians.Abraham Ezra Millgram''Jerusalem Curiosities,''Jewish Publication Society, 199 ...
. The
Jerusalem Islamic Waqf The Department of the Jerusalem Awqaf and Al-Aqsa Mosque Affairs, together with its board the Islamic Awqaf Council, is the Jordanian-appointed organization responsible for controlling and managing the current Islamic edifices on the Temple Moun ...
called Muslims to pray outside the Temple Mount, and not enter the mosque complex until the metal detectors were removed. On 25 July the Israeli Cabinet voted to remove the metal detectors and replace them with other surveillance measures. Nevertheless, Palestinian activists decided to continue protesting, claiming those cameras represent a greater degree of control than the metal detectors. On 27 July, Israel removed the new security measures from the Mount, which led to the Waqf telling Muslims they could return to pray inside the compound. 113 Palestinians were reportedly injured in clashes with police after thousands of Muslims returned to pray at Temple Mount. Within an 11-day period, eleven people had died due to the crisis.


Temple Mount shooting

Shortly after 07:00 in the morning on 14 July 2017, three gunmen, armed with rifles and a handgun, left the Temple Mount and approached a police checkpoint in the
Lions' Gate Lions' Gate ( he, שער האריות, Sha'ar ha-Arayot, Lions' Gate, ar, باب الأسباط, Bab al-Asbat, Gate of the Tribes), also St Stephen's Gate, is one of the seven open Gates of the Old City of Jerusalem. It leads into the Muslim Qu ...
outside of it in East Jerusalem where they opened fire on officers of
Israeli Border Police The Israel Border Police ( he, מִשְׁמַר הַגְּבוּל, Mišmar Ha-Gvul) is the gendarmerie and border security branch of the Israel National Police. It is also commonly known by its Hebrew abbreviation Magav (), meaning border gu ...
. Two Israeli border police officers were critically wounded and died later, and another two were moderately wounded in the attack. The three attackers fled back to the square in front of one of the mosques on the temple mount and were shot by Israeli police officers.


Aftermath

Israeli authorities shut down the Temple Mount complex, and for the first time in years,
Friday prayers In Islam, Friday prayer or Congregational prayer ( ar, صَلَاة ٱلْجُمُعَة, ') is a prayer ('' ṣalāt'') that Muslims hold every Friday, after noon instead of the Zuhr prayer. Muslims ordinarily pray five times each day according ...
at the al-Aqsa mosque were canceled. The old city was also closed to traffic. The al-Aqsa mosque was raided by Israeli authorities and
Jerusalem Islamic Waqf The Department of the Jerusalem Awqaf and Al-Aqsa Mosque Affairs, together with its board the Islamic Awqaf Council, is the Jordanian-appointed organization responsible for controlling and managing the current Islamic edifices on the Temple Moun ...
personnel were questioned. The Israeli police said they found additional weapons in the raid, including mock guns, knives, clubs, chains, and other weapons.


Disturbances on the Temple Mount

On the 16 July, Israeli authorities reopened the Temple Mount, after placing metal detectors at the entrances to the compound. The Waqf called on Muslims to protest outside of the compound instead of entering, with around 200 Muslims protesting outside on the 16th. Israeli authorities also announced the installation of security cameras outside the compound. On 21 July, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas ordered the suspension of all official contact with Israel until it removed the new security measures. Thousands of young Palestinians clashed with Israeli security services in protest of the new security measures put in place at the al-Aqsa mosque. On Friday, July 21 three Palestinians were killed in clashes with Israeli forces in Jerusalem's Old City, Palestinian officials said. Following a ruling by the supreme court on the 25 of July, the attackers' bodies were released to their families on the night of the 26 July. In a show of support for the attackers, some 10,000 people marched in the funeral processing in Umm al-Fahm, praising the attack and calling the attackers heroes and
shahid ''Shaheed'' ( ,  ,   ; pa, ਸ਼ਹੀਦ) denotes a martyr in Islam. The word is used frequently in the Quran in the generic sense of "witness" but only once in the sense of "martyr" (i.e. one who dies for his faith); ...
s. Even though Umm al-Fahm is located inside Israel, (they are Israeli citizens) they still praised the terrorists during the funeral. But not all are radicalized. One relative said, "We did not want to talk too much about what happened, and we did not know at all that they were planning to shoot policemen in Jerusalem. If we had known, we would have stopped them." The Islamic Waqf along with the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem announced on the morning of 27 July that Muslims can return to worship at the al-Aqsa compound after Israel completely removed the newly installed security measures. Following the victory celebrations that lasted all Thursday afternoon, thousands of Muslims entered the Temple Mount. Almost immediately after worshippers returned to the site, clashes broke out between worshippers and Israeli security forces with worshippers throwing rocks and security forces using tear gas and stun grenades. 113 worshippers were injured and one Israeli police officer injured. 28 July, Amid high security in the Old City of Jerusalem, thousands of Muslim worshipers attended Friday prayers at the Temple Mount. Crowds dispersed peacefully from the compound, because the entrance to prayer-goers was limited to men aged 50 and older and all women.


Additional incidents


Halamish attack

On 21 July 2017, a 19-years old Omar Al-Abed al-Jalil broke into a Jewish house in the Israeli settlement of Halamish. He stabbed four people in the house, killing three of them. Before the attack he wrote in his Facebook account: "Take your weapons and resist.... I only have a knife and it will answer the call of Al-Aqsa.... I know I am going and will not return."


Petah Tikva attack

On 24 July 2017, an Arab Israeli civilian was stabbed in Petah Tikva,
Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
, by a Palestinian man from
Qalqilya Qalqilya or Qalqiliya ( ar, قلقيلية, Qalqīlyaḧ) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank which serves as the administrative center of the Qalqilya Governorate of the State of Palestine. In the 2007 census, the city had a population of 41, ...
. The incident is suspected as an act of terrorism.


Attack

The attacker, a Palestinian resident of
Qalqilya Qalqilya or Qalqiliya ( ar, قلقيلية, Qalqīlyaḧ) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank which serves as the administrative center of the Qalqilya Governorate of the State of Palestine. In the 2007 census, the city had a population of 41, ...
, stabbed a bus driver near a Shawarma stand in the Israeli city of Petah Tikva, after he had entered to the shop. The assailant was arrested and taken for questioning by the Israeli police. the victim, a 32-years-old Arab-Israeli man, resident of the Arab village of Arraba, was in moderate-to-serious condition from stab wounds in his neck, and was taken to Beilinson Hospital. The attack has been described by authorities as a terror attack, with the victim being attacked due to the attacker mistaking his identity for Jewish.


Perpetrator

The stabber, identified as 21-years old Palestinian man from
Qalqilya Qalqilya or Qalqiliya ( ar, قلقيلية, Qalqīlyaḧ) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank which serves as the administrative center of the Qalqilya Governorate of the State of Palestine. In the 2007 census, the city had a population of 41, ...
, was illegally residing and working in Israel. He repeatedly told police just after the stabbing that he carried out the attack "for
Al-Aqsa Aqsa'', ''Aksa, al-Aksa or al-Aqsa ( ar, الأقصى, link=no, translit=al-Aqṣā) usually refer to either: *al-Aqsa Mosque compound, also known as , a religious site in Jerusalem located on the Temple Mount *, also known as the Qibli Mosque, ...
." He spent time in prison in the years 2015 and 2016.


Attack on Israel embassy in Amman

On 23 July 2017, a Jordanian man stabbed an Israeli guard at the Israeli embassy complex in Amman, Jordan. The Israeli authorities relate the attack to the crisis.


Disturbances in the West Bank

On 28 July, Clashes were reported in the West Bank between Palestinians and the IDF, particularly in Bethlehem, Nablus, Kalkilya, Hevron, Kafr Qadum and the Tomb of Rachel. The Palestine Red Crescent said that one Palestinian was wounded by live fire, two by rubber coated metal bullets and ten from tear gas inhalation during clashes in Bethlehem.


Confrontations on the Gaza border

Hundreds of youths reached the border area between the Gaza strip and Israel on Friday, 28 July. This was in response to a call by Hamas for protests to take place in solidarity with Palestinian Arabs in Jerusalem. An IDF spokeswoman said that soldiers opened fire at demonstrators trying to damage the security fence that separates Israel from Gaza. Warning shot were initially fired as protesters set fire to tires and hurled rocks. As a result of the clashes, 16 year old Abdulrahman Abu Hmeisa was killed and seven others were also wounded by Israeli gunfire.


Reactions in the Arab World


Jordan

Following the terrorist attack that killed two Israeli policemen, a Jordanian statement called Israel to “refrain from taking actions that will violate the status quo in Jerusalem and the Al-Aqsa Mosque.”


The Palestinian Authority

On 21 July, Mahmoud Abbas announced that the Palestinian leadership will freeze all contact with Israel, as a protest over the new Israeli security measures. In order to encourage the demonstrations, The
Palestinian Authority Martyrs Fund The Palestinian Authority Martyrs Fund is a fund operated by the Palestinian Authority (PA) which pays monthly cash stipends to the families of Palestinians killed, injured, or imprisoned while carrying out politically motivated violence against ...
offered financial compensation to those involved. After the removal of the metal detectors, Abbas announced and called the Palestinians to continue the uprising. Also, as the leader of the Palestinian Authority, he guided the Tanzim to spread the violence to Judea and Sameria, on 28 July; the second day of rage.


Saudi Arabia

King Salman, sent a message to Jerusalem via the White House, urging Israel to reopen the Temple Mount to Muslim worshipers as soon as possible.


See also

*
2014 Jerusalem unrest The 2014 Jerusalem unrest, sometimes referred as the Silent Intifada (other names given include urban intifada, Firecracker intifada, car intifada, Jerusalem intifada, and Third intifada) is a term occasionally used to refer to an increase in vi ...
* List of violent incidents in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, July–December 2017


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Temple Mount crisis, 2017 2017 in Israel 2017 in the State of Palestine Conflicts in 2017 Israeli–Palestinian conflict in Jerusalem July 2017 events in Asia 2017 crisis 2010s in Jerusalem