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Israel Removes Metal Detectors from Al-Aqsa Mosque

Web Desk (July 27, 2017): Israel has taken a U-turn after days of growing Palestinian street protests by removing all additional security measures around the compound housing al-Aqsa mosque, following the removal of metal detectors earlier this week.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet voted to remove the metal detector gates after a meeting lasting several hours convening for a second time on Monday.

Sheikh Najeh Bakirat, director of al-Aqsa Mosque, said on Tuesday that the move does not fulfil the demands of the Muslim worshippers as the security cameras remain.

The reversal marks a victory for a campaign of civil disobedience that saw Palestinians refuse en masse to enter the compound, one of the city’s most revered sites, choosing to pray instead in the streets of Jerusalem’s Old City.

The remaining additional security measures that had been installed by Israel in the last fortnight – including barriers and infrastructure for new cameras – were removed by workers in the early hours of Thursday amid mounting fears of unrest during what were expected to be large protests around Friday prayers.

The move sparked celebrations by young Palestinians, and local residents came out to hand out sweets in the streets. Muslim leaders in Jerusalem told worshippers to end their boycott of entering al-Aqsa and return to the mosque to pray.

Israel installed metal detectors and security cameras after gunmen shot dead two Israeli guards near the al-Aqsa compound, Islam’s third holiest site, on July 14.

On Tuesday, the Palestinian Authority said the Israeli government bears full responsibility for attacking al-Aqsa and changing the religious landmarks of Jerusalem.

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