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JERUSALEM — The Israeli navy stated Saturday that three rockets had been launched from Syria towards Israeli territory, a uncommon assault from the nation’s northeastern neighbor that comes after days of escalating violence on a number of fronts.
There was no quick declare of duty for the rocket launches, which brought on no harm or casualties. Just one rocket managed to cross into Israeli territory and landed in a subject within the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, the Israeli navy stated. Fragments of one other destroyed missile fell into Jordanian territory close to the Syrian border, Jordan’s navy reported.
In Syria, an adviser to President Bashar Assad described the rocket strikes as “a part of the earlier, current and persevering with response to the brutal enemy.”
Within the occupied West Financial institution, Israeli safety forces fatally shot a 20-year-old Palestinian within the city of Azzun, Palestinian well being officers stated, stirring protests within the space. The Israeli navy stated troops fired at Palestinians hurling stones and explosive units. The Palestinian Well being Ministry recognized the Palestinian killed as Ayed Salim.
His loss of life got here at a time of unusually heightened violence within the West Financial institution. Over 90 Palestinians and have been killed by Israeli fireplace up to now this yr, a minimum of half of them affiliated with militant teams, in line with a tally by The Related Press.
Palestinian assaults on Israelis have killed 19 folks in that point — together with on Friday two British-Israelis shot to loss of life close to a settlement within the Jordan Valley and an Italian vacationer killed by a suspected car-ramming in Tel Aviv. All however one had been civilians.
The rocket fireplace from Syria comes towards the backdrop of hovering Israeli-Palestinian tensions touched off by an Israeli police raid on Jerusalem’s most delicate web site, the sacred compound dwelling to the Al-Aqsa mosque. That outraged Palestinians marking the holy fasting month of Ramadan and prompted militants in Lebanon — in addition to Palestinian militants within the Gaza Strip — to fireplace a heavy barrage of rockets into Israel.
In retaliation, Israeli warplanes struck websites allegedly linked to the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza and southern Lebanon.
Late Saturday, tensions ran excessive in Jerusalem as a couple of hundred Palestinian worshippers barricaded themselves within the mosque, which sits on a hilltop within the coronary heart of Jerusalem’s Outdated Metropolis sacred to each Muslims and Jews. Israeli police efforts to evict the worshippers locked within the mosque in a single day with stockpiled firecrackers and stones spiraled into unrest within the holy web site earlier this week.
The most recent escalations prompted Israeli Protection Minister Yoav Gallant to increase a closure barring entrance to Israel for Palestinians from the occupied West Financial institution and Gaza Strip during the Jewish vacation of Passover, whereas police beefed up forces in Jerusalem on the eve of delicate spiritual celebrations.
In a separate incident within the northern West Financial institution metropolis of Nablus late Saturday, a pacesetter of an area impartial armed group often known as the Lion’s Den claimed the group executed an alleged Israeli collaborator who had tipped off the Israeli navy to the areas and actions of the group’s members. Israeli safety forces have focused and killed a number of of the group’s key members in current months.
The accused man’s killing couldn’t be instantly confirmed, however movies in Palestinian media confirmed medics and residents gathered round his bloodied physique within the Outdated Metropolis, the place the Lion’s Den holds sway. “Traitors have neither a rustic nor a folks,” Lion’s Den commander Oday Azizi stated in a press release.
The strikes come at a time of heightened spiritual fervor – with Ramadan coinciding with Passover and Easter celebrations. Jerusalem’s Outdated Metropolis, dwelling to key Jewish, Muslim and Christian holy websites, has been teeming with guests and non secular pilgrims from world wide.
Gallant stated {that a} closure imposed final Wednesday, on the eve of Passover, would stay in impact till the vacation ends on Wednesday night time. The order prevents Palestinians from getting into Israel for work or to wish in Jerusalem this week, although mass prayers had been permitted on the Al-Aqsa Mosque on Friday. Gallant additionally ordered the Israeli navy to be ready to help Israeli police. The military later introduced that it was deploying extra troops round Jerusalem and within the West Financial institution.
Over 2,000 police had been anticipated to be deployed in Jerusalem on Sunday – when tens of 1000’s of Jews are anticipated to collect on the Western Wall for the particular Passover priestly blessing. The Western Wall is the holiest web site the place Jews can pray and sits subsequent to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, the place giant crowds collect every day for prayers throughout Ramadan.
Jerusalem police chief Doron Turgeman met along with his commanders on Saturday for a safety evaluation. He accused the Hamas militant group, which guidelines the Gaza Strip, of making an attempt to incite violence forward of Sunday’s priestly blessing with false claims that Jews deliberate to storm the mosque.
“We’ll enable the liberty of worship and we are going to enable the arrival of Muslims to wish,” he stated, including that police “will act with willpower and sensitivity” to make sure that all faiths can have a good time safely.
The present spherical of violence erupted earlier within the week after Israeli police raided the mosque, firing tear gasoline and stun grenades to disperse a whole lot of Palestinians who had barricaded themselves inside. Violent scenes from the raid sparked unrest within the contested capital and outrage throughout the Arab world.