Israeli police fatally shoot and kill man at Jerusalem's holiest site

Israeli police shot and killed a man who they alleged tried to snatch an officers gun at an entrance to a Jerusalem holy site early Saturday raising fears of further violence during a time of heightened tensions at the flashpoint compoundThe police said the slain man was 26yearold Mohammed Alasibi from Hura a Bedouin Arab village in southern IsraelPalestinian worshippers at the entrance to the site on Saturday morning had a different account saying that police shot the man at least 10 times after he tried to prevent them from harassing a woman who was on her way to the holy compoundHours after the incident the muddy stone alleyway leading to the compound was still stained with bloodAuthorities said that officers detained the man for questioning outside the sacred compound home to AlAqsa Mosque in the heart of Jerusalems Old City the third holiest shrine in Islam The compound revered by Jews as the Temple Mount is also the most sacred site in JudaismThe citys contested compound has been a focus for clashes in the past particularly in times of turmoil in Israel and the West Bank This year as violence surges in the occupied territory under the most rightwing government in Israeli history fears of an escalation in Jerusalem have mounted with the start of the Islamic holy month of RamadanIsraeli police have boosted their forces in the area as tens of thousands of Muslim worshippers from Jerusalem and the West Bank gather for prayers at AlAqsa Mosque On Friday more than 200000 Palestinians gathered for noon prayers at the compound which passed peacefullyJust after midnight Saturday police said Alasibi attacked one of the officers and grabbed his gun managing to fire two bullets into the air as the officer struggled to restrain him Police described the incident as an attempted terrorist attack and said they shot and killed him in selfdefenceBut Palestinian worshippers milling around the compound on Saturday insisted that the man was not a terrorist Noureddine a 17yearold who lived in the neighbourhood and declined to give his last name for fear of reprisals said he saw Alasibi confront police who had stopped a female worshipper on her way to AlAqsa MosqueAlso read Israeli PM Netanyahu US President Biden exchange frosty words over legal overhaulAlasibis relationship to the woman was not clear He said some kind of disagreement broke out between Alasibi and the officers before he heard a dozen shots ring outNothing could justify that many shots he said pointing to chaotic footage he filmed that showed Palestinian vendors and worshippers screaming at the sound of bullets being fired in rapid succession They were all at close rangePalestinian media widely reported that Alasibi was a doctor who had studied medicine recently in Romania Noureddine said police tried to force Palestinian vendors and worshippers out of the area after the incident beating him and others with batons Israeli police briefly closed the site before reopening it for dawn prayersConfrontations at the hilltop compound have triggered wider violence in the region in the past Clashes at the site in May 2021 helped fuel the outbreak of a bloody 11day war between Israel and Gaza Strips Hamas rulersThis years convergence of Ramadan with the Jewish holiday of Passover could increase the possibility of friction as the Old City hosts a large influx of pilgrimsEarly on Saturday residents of the Old City shared videos of Israeli police entering the AlAqsa Mosque compound to remove a banner belonging to the Islamic militant group Hamas hanging over the shrine that called worshippers to confront rightwing Jews who were planning to tour the compound on SundaySettlers in the Old City and devout Jewish Israelis have visited the Temple Mount in rising numbers in recent years Under a longstanding agreement known as the status quo Jews are allowed to visit but not pray at the site Any small perceived change to the status quo at the site can trigger violenceFor the past year IsraeliPalestinian fighting has surged in the occupied West Bank At least 86 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli or settler gunfire this year according to an Associated Press tally Palestinian attacks against Israelis have killed 15 people in the same periodIsrael says most of those killed have been militants But stonethrowing youths protesting police incursions and people not involved in the confrontations have also been killedThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever