Zionist Ben-Gvir storms Al-Aqsa compound on first Friday of Ramadan

QUDS, Feb. 20 (YPA) – Zionist National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir on Friday stormed the vicinity of Al-Aqsa Mosque on the first Friday of the holy month of Ramadan.

Palestinian media reported that Ben-Gvir entered the compound under heavy Israeli police protection, as security forces reinforced their presence at the mosque’s gates and throughout the entrances to the Old City.

During the incursion, Ben-Gvir convened a field meeting with the Israeli police chief and several senior security officials, calling for tighter measures to be enforced at Al-Aqsa Mosque during the month of Ramadan.

The move was widely seen as paving the way for further restrictions on Palestinians in Quds (Jerusalem).

Since the early morning hours, Israeli forces imposed strict measures on Palestinians coming from the West Bank to Jerusalem for prayers, turning back dozens of elderly people at the Qalandia and Bethlehem military checkpoints for allegedly lacking the required permits.

Additional restrictions were enforced at the entrances to the Old City and the gates of Al-Aqsa Mosque, where young men were subjected to ID checks and many were denied entry.

@E.Y.M