Dozens of settlers storm Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa complex

JERUSALEM

Dozens of Israeli settlers on Sunday forced their way into Jerusalem's flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, according to a Palestinian NGO.

The settlers toured the holy site under the protection of Israeli police, the Wadi Hilweh Information Center said in a statement.

Settler visits to the holy site resumed on May 31, after a two-month closure due to the spread of coronavirus in Israel and Palestinian territories.

Al-Aqsa Mosque is the world's third-holiest site for Muslims. Jews call the area the Temple Mount, claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. It annexed the entire city in 1980 in a move never recognized by the international community.

International law continues to view East Jerusalem, along with the entire West Bank, as "occupied territories" and considers all Jewish settlement construction there as illegal.

* Ahmed Asmar contributed to this report from Ankara

JERUSALEM

Dozens of Israeli settlers on Sunday forced their way into Jerusalem's flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, according to a Palestinian NGO.

The settlers toured the holy site under the protection of Israeli police, the Wadi Hilweh Information Center said in a statement.

Settler visits to the holy site resumed on May 31, after a two-month closure due to the spread of coronavirus in Israel and Palestinian territories.

Al-Aqsa Mosque is the world's third-holiest site for Muslims. Jews call the area the Temple Mount, claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. It annexed the entire city in 1980 in a move never recognized by the international community.

International law continues to view East Jerusalem, along with the entire West Bank, as "occupied territories" and considers all Jewish settlement construction there as illegal.

* Ahmed Asmar contributed to this report from Ankara