UN Slams Israel Killings of Palestinians

Rasa - The United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he "deeply deplores" the killings of Palestinians as anger boiled over increased Israeli restrictions at al-Aqsa compound.

News ID: 431190

Date: 22 July 2017 - 23:17

Rasa - Guterres condemned the killings and called for an investigation on Saturday, hours after mass protests by Palestinians around the holy site turned deadly, Al-Jazeera reported.

He urged Israeli and Palestinian leaders to refrain from actions that could further escalate the volatile situation in Jerusalem's Old City, saying that religious sites should be spaces for reflection, not violence.

Citing Guterres, UN Deputy Spokesman Farhan Haq said the organisation understands "legitimate security concerns, but on the other hand it is important that the status quo at the site be retained".

Clashes between Palestinian worshippers and Israeli regime forces outside the mosque compound continued for a seventh consecutive day on Friday as Israeli officials refused to heed growing international calls to remove metal detectors recently installed at the entrance to the religious site. Israel has also installed security cameras at the Muslim holy site and barred men under 50 from entering the Old City for Friday prayers.

Israeli soldiers used live fire, tear gas and rubber bullets against the demonstrators in different parts of the occupied West Bank, killing four, including a seven-year old child, and injuring some 400 others.

Thousands of Palestinians also took to the streets of the besieged Gaza Strip, expressing solidarity with protesters in the West Bank.

Israel placed the detectors in front of al-Aqsa Mosque, generally known as the Noble Sanctuary, on July 14 after a reported shootout near the compound left two Israeli soldiers and three Palestinians dead.

The Arab League condemned the Israeli forces’ deadly violence against Palestinian protesters on Friday. The United Nations also called for de-escalation in the occupied territories.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said he will suspend all contacts with Israel until it puts an end to its new restraining measures at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East Jerusalem al-Quds.

"I, on behalf of the Palestinian leadership, announce... a freeze of all contacts with the occupation state on all levels until Israel commits to cancelling all the measures against our Palestinian people in general and al-Quds and al-Aqsa Mosque in particular," Abbas said in a brief televised speech on Friday after meeting his aides, presstv reported.

Abbas added that the measures were "falsely presented as a security measure to take control over al-Aqsa Mosque."

The Palestinian Authority and Israel have a series of contacts on different issues, including recent deals related to water and electricity.

More than 300 Palestinians have lost their lives at the hands of Israeli forces in the ongoing tensions since the beginning of October 2015.

The Tel Aviv regime has tried to change the demographic makeup of Jerusalem al-Quds over the past decades by constructing settlements, destroying historical sites and expelling the local Palestinian population.

Palestinians say the Israeli measures are aimed at paving the way for the Judaization of the city.

The al-Aqsa Mosque compound is a flashpoint Islamic site, which is also holy to Jews. The mosque is Islam’s third holiest site after Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.

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