Anadolu staff
14 May 2024•Update: 14 May 2024
JERUSALEM
An illegal Israeli settler on Tuesday raised the Israeli flag while storming into the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in the occupied East Jerusalem.
Following calls by extremist Israeli groups, illegal settlers stormed into the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex to mark Israel's independence day event during which one Israeli stormed into the mosque holding an Israeli flag.
While Israelis mark May 15 as their independence day and Israel's creation, the Palestinian people mark it as their "Nakba Day" to reaffirm their right to return to the lands from which their ancestors were forcibly displaced.
Settlers also placed an Israeli flag on the Al-Mugharbah Gate area, western the holy mosque, the gate used by illegal Israeli settlers to storm into the mosque under the Israeli forces' protection.
Palestinians consider raising the Israeli flag inside the mosque as a provocative move.
They also accuse Israel of taking measures to "Judaize" Jerusalem, including the Al Aqsa Mosque, in an attempt to erase its Islamic identity.
Since 2003, Israel has allowed illegal settlers into the flashpoint compound on an almost daily basis with the exception of Fridays and Saturdays.
Al Aqsa Mosque is the world's third-holiest site for Muslims. Jews call the area the Temple Mount, saying 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.
*Writing by Ahmed Asmar
