Israeli police shot and killed a young Arab man at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem
Last night, Israeli police killed young Muhammad Elassibi (26) from the Bedouin village of Hura, in the south of Israel, because he allegedly tried to steal a weapon from a police officer near the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, according to a police statement.
The incident in Jerusalem's Old City happened when the police stopped the young man for a document check.
Israeli media reports a police statement that he attacked the officer, grabbed his rifle and managed to fire one shot, and that other officers then responded by shooting because they felt threatened.
However, eyewitnesses told the Israeli website Unet that Elassibi, who recently completed medical studies in Romania, did not pose any danger, but intervened because the police were mistreating a woman he tried to help.
- The shooting was completely unnecessary, said an unnamed eyewitness, noting that the victim was not armed.
In the videos published on social networks, it can be seen that strong police forces are deployed in the passages and in front of the gates leading to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third most important in Islam, reports the American media.
After the murder, there were clashes between the police and Palestinian vendors and worshipers who spent the night praying in the mosque on the occasion of the holy Muslim fast of Ramadan.
The site where the Al-Aqsa Mosque is located is called the Holy Sanctuary (Haram al-Sharif) by Muslims, and is also sacred to Jews because it once housed ancient Jewish temples.