Sunday, May 9, 2021

Updates From Israel - Times Liveblogging As Events Unfold


In fresh Jerusalem violence, clashes erupt outside Hebrew University campus

The Times of Israel is liveblogging Sunday’s events as they happen.



Rocket shot down by Iron Dome — IDF

Two rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip toward the city of Ashkelon and surrounding communities, according to the Israel Defense Forces.

One of the projectiles was intercepted over the city by the Iron Dome missile defense system, the military says. The second appears to have landed in an open, unpopulated area.

Video footage from Ashkelon shows at least two interceptor missiles being fired into the air and then detonating, apparently shooting down one of the rockets.

Rocket warning sirens sound in southern communities near Gaza

Incoming rocket sirens sound in the city of Ashkelon and nearby communities.

There are no immediate reports of injuries or damage.

The military says it is investigating what triggered the alarms.


Israeli TV report on Jerusalem violence: ‘A call for a religious war’

Channel 12’s reporter Ohad Hemo presents a report from East Jerusalem and the Old City, including during Friday night’s violence, which he says adds up to “a call for a religious war.”

On the Temple Mount on Friday and last night, he shows crowds of thousands of Muslims on the Temple Mount shouting: “Qassam brigades, come on. Hit Tel Aviv!” and “We swear by Allah, we will protect the Al-Aqsa.”

One bearded East Jerusalem man in his 20s tells Hemo: “This will be a religious war. Not the kind of war the world is expecting…. You’re a Jew and I, a Muslim. We’ll go on fighting. There won’t be peace between us.”

At Damascus Gate last night, another young man tells him: “If they want clashes, we’re ready.”

Adds another: “We’re ready at any moment.”

Not long after, petrol bombs and stones began to fly at police in the area, he reports, and police fired stun grenades among other crowd dispersal means.

Hemo, now wearing a protective helmet, asks another man, “Is this a war for Jerusalem?” The man replies: “You’re the ones causing a war for Jerusalem. We came to pray.”

Adds a woman next to him: “This is our land. We came to pray.”






Egypt summons Israeli envoy over Temple Mount violence

Egypt summons the Israeli ambassador to Cairo, Amira Oron, over the recent violence on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City during Ramadan.

“During the meeting, Egypt emphasized its stance, rejecting and denouncing the Israeli authorities’ storming of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque. The officials stressed the necessity of respecting Islamic sanctities, providing protection for Palestinian civilians, and safeguarding their rights to practice religious ceremonies,” a statement from the Egyptian foreign ministry says.

It adds: “The Israeli ambassador was asked to convey a message to Israeli officials stating the need to provide protection for worshipers and allow them to pray in safety and freedom, and for the Israeli authorities to assume their responsibilities and control the security situation in Jerusalem.”

Representing the Egyptian side was Ambassador Nazih Al-Najari, the assistant minister of foreign affairs.


Israel closes Gaza fishing zone after spate of arson balloon attacks

Israel’s military liaison to the Palestinians says the navy is closing the Gaza Strip’s fishing zone in response to the dozens of balloon-borne incendiary devices launched from the enclave that sparked over 100 fires in southern Israel throughout the day and in response to a mortar attack last night.

Alian blames the de facto ruler of the Strip, the Hamas terror group, for the violence, saying it will “bear the consequences of the violence.”


Military to hold exercise Monday to simulate attack on Tel Aviv HQ

The military will hold an exercise in its Tel Aviv headquarters on Monday simulating a terror attack and rioting on the base, the Israel Defense Forces says.

People near the base, known as the Kirya, can expect to hear the sounds of explosions and sirens and may see smoke and large numbers of troops moving through the area, the military says.

Clashes break out between Palestinians, cops outside Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Clashes erupt between Palestinians and police outside the entrance to the Hebrew University of Jerusalem campus on Mount Scopus.

The Palestinians throw rocks at the cops, who respond with stun grenades.

Police say three suspects were arrested and three officers were injured.

It is not immediately clear what precipitated the clashes.



Gaza balloons spark 39 fires in south since the morning

The Israel Fire and Rescue Services says 39 fires sparked in the south today were caused by balloon-borne incendiary devices flown from Gaza.

Most of the blazes were small brush fires, though the Be’eri nature reserve and three wheat fields were significantly damaged, according to a statement.

Hundreds protest outside Israeli embassy in Jordan over Jerusalem evictions

Hundreds of Jordanians protest the pending eviction of Palestinian families from the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah in front of the Israeli embassy in Amman.

Over seventy Palestinians in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood are set to be evicted in the coming weeks, to be replaced by right-wing Jewish Israelis. The Palestinians live in houses built on land courts say was owned by Jewish religious associations before the establishment of Israel 1948.

“A nation whose leader is Mohammad will not kneel,” protesters chant, referring to the most revered prophet in Islam. “We salute Sheikh Jarrah.”




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