Nasima Khatun
It has been reported that over 150 Palestinians were left injured after Israeli forces brutally attacked Muslims praying in Al-Aqsa.
Medics at the scene claimed that the number of people injured has continued rising as the armed officers took to the surrounding areas of the holy site to continue their assault on worshippers during the month of Ramadan.
According to Palestine Red Crescent, most of the Palestinian injuries on Friday and Saturday were incurred by rubber bullets, grenades and beatings with police batons.
Videos of the attacks were posted to social media, with many left speechless watching the intense violence used against unarmed civilians. In one video, you can see an Israeli officer wearing riot gear running up to a woman holding a camera and striking her with a baton. She screams out in pain, while others around her shout for him to leave her alone.
Another video saw IDF (Israeli Defence Forces) soldiers shoving elderly Palestinian men into a huddle, in an attempt to get them away from Al-Aqsa.
“0% regard, respect, humility, humanity for anyone but their own Israeli apartheid selves. If they can shamelessly do this to the elderly in public, in front of cameras, at places of worship, during holy events. What when camera off,” wrote one user.
“How can we not say anything about the way Palestinians are being treated??? How do Israeli forces have authority to shove these people and harm them the way they are? Why is criticism of Israel’s actions now the western definition of antisemetism??” Another said.
“Imagine the sheer magnitude of meltdown we’d witness from the liberals and neo-cons, if this video came out of Ukraine. A day will come when these tyrants will receive their Karma!” A third added.
In a pathetic attempt to defend their actions, the Israeli foreign ministry said dozens of masked men carrying Palestinian and Hamas flags marched to the compound early on Friday and gathered “stones.”
“Police were forced to enter the grounds to disperse the crowd and remove the stones and rocks, in order to prevent further violence,” it tweeted.
If that was the case, how does that explain attacking unarmed civilians? If there were so-called Hamas terrorists inside the holy site, how did the attention divert to attacking worshippers? And not only that, how did over 150 people get injured, including in the surrounding areas? That woman with the camera and those elderly men that were being shoved definitely looked like they were about to do some damage with those invisible stones, didn’t they?
Oh please. Come up with something better.
Only after the attacks did Palestinians try and defend themselves, but to no avail. How do you expect unarmed civilians to stand a chance against heavily armed riot soldiers hurling grenades and rubber bullets?
This isn’t the first time we’ve witnessed chaotic scenes like this. Last year, during Ramadan, Israeli forces also stormed Al-Aqsa and bombarded worshippers with the same bullets and grenades as seen in recent attacks.
This is absolutely unacceptable. And during one of the holiest weekends for all people of Abrahamic faiths? Disgusting.
May God lighten the burden for Palestinians and finally free them from the torment of these oppressors. The truth shall always prevail.