RAMALLAH: King Abdullah II of Jordan on Sunday called on Israel to “end all illegal and provocative measures” that lead to “further aggravation” in occupied Jerusalem and to respect the existing historical and legal situation.

His remarks come as nearly 20 people were injured in multiple incidents in and around Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque on Sunday, two days after major violence at the site.

Palestinian officials have accused Israel of trying to divide the sensitive holy site.

The latest clashes bring the number of injured since Friday to more than 170, at a tense time when the Jewish holiday of Passover coincides with Ramadan.

Palestinians are expecting another tense Ramadan week as extremist Jewish groups shout the slogan “This Passover is in the Al-Aqsa Mosque”.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said 19 Palestinians were injured, including at least five hospitalized, in Sunday’s clashes that erupted outside the mosque. Five of them were taken to hospital.

He said some were injured by rubber-coated steel bullets.

According to Palestinian sources, violent clashes erupted at Al-Aqsa Mosque on Sunday morning after some 728 extremist Jews stormed its courtyards. Several people were injured and arrested.

Palestinian sources confirmed that the Israeli police closed the Al-Aqsa Mosque and prevented entry, while trying to secure an entry route for Jewish visitors to the main holy site.

Clashes erupted in the Bab Huttah neighborhood adjacent to the mosque two days after violent clashes left more than 150 people injured and around 400 arrested by Israeli police. The youths threw fireworks at troops stationed at Al-Aqsa Gate and prevented worshipers from entering.

Israeli police fired regular barrages of rubber bullets and sound bombs into Bab Huttah Alley.

Palestinian sources in Jerusalem told Arab News that Israeli forces turned the Al-Aqsa compound into a military barracks, as they invaded before 7 a.m. Sunday and emptied its courtyards of worshippers.

Troops surrounded some people inside the Al-Qibli prayer mosque and fired rubber bullets at them through the windows they smashed on Friday.

They also tampered with external loudspeakers after young men called on their friends to come to Al-Aqsa and prevented paramedics from entering the mosque to treat the injured.

On Friday morning, police clashed with Palestinians in the compound, including inside the mosque, prompting strong condemnation from Muslim countries. Some 150 people were injured in these clashes.

Adnan Al-Husseini, a member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, said: “Al-Aqsa has become a race arena to please the settlers among members of the Israeli government, which has lost the parliamentary majority.

Sheikh Mohammed Hussein, Mufti of Jerusalem and the Palestinian Holy Territories, told Arab News: “It is a worrying situation, and it is in no way acceptable that the Al-Aqsa Mosque is emptied of its Muslim owners and allowed to the settlers to enter it in this harsh way without considering the sanctity and sanctity of the mosque and the dignity of the Muslim worshippers.

He added: “The Israeli occupation does not take into account the situation of the worshipers in the mosque and does not want them to be present during the incursions of the Jewish extremists, which is unacceptable.

Israeli sources reported that a delegation from the Egyptian intelligence services paid a short visit to Israel on Friday to conduct direct mediation efforts in light of the current escalation, which threatens a further eruption of the situation in the Strip. Gaza.

The sources added that the Egyptian side asked the Hamas leadership to “control the situation” in the Gaza Strip, fearing that any mistake could lead to a new series of missile attacks from the Gaza Strip through its borders, which would cause the situation to deteriorate. a point of no return.

Israel’s Channel 12, meanwhile, reported that far-right Israeli MK Itamar Ben-Gvir is considering moving his office from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood to Jerusalem’s Damascus Gate area.

The channel claimed that Ben-Gvir sent a message to the commander of the Jerusalem police on Sunday, saying: “If the violence of the Palestinians continues in Jerusalem, and if the political level does not allow you to act freely against them, I open a parliamentary office at Damascus Gate in the coming days.

A Hamas statement said it held Israel responsible for the repercussions of attacking Palestinian worshipers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque at dawn on Sunday and allowing settlers to loot and desecrate the Al-Aqsa Mosque. which provokes the feelings of the Palestinian people, Arabs and Muslims around the world.

The Hamas statement added, “The Palestinian people will confront the occupation’s continued aggression against the Palestinian worshipers and thwart its malicious plans for the temporal and spatial sanctuary of Al-Aqsa Mosque during the holy month of Ramadan. The Palestinian people are committed to protecting Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Holy Land at all costs.

However, the last time the month of Ramadan coincided with Passover and Easter was three decades ago, when thousands of worshipers from all three faiths arrived in the Old City at the same time.