Security forces were on high alert in Jerusalem for the first Friday of Ramadan, as mass afternoon prayers held at the Temple Mount passed peacefully.
The Muslim holy month, which began Thursday and will end April 21, often sees elevated Israeli-Palestinian tensions, with frictions already high this year in Jerusalem and across the West Bank following months of deadly violence.
According to official estimates, some 83,000 people took part in afternoon prayers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, located atop the Temple Mount.
“This is a sensitive and complex period,” Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai said after an assessment with commanders at the Western Wall in Jerusalem’s Old City. “The unique social fabric in East Jerusalem, the Old City and Temple Mount needs to be preserved.”
“We will do everything in our capabilities to ensure freedom of religion for all worshipers while maintaining security and order,” he added.
Shortly after prayers ended, police detained one man suspected of incitement for hanging the banner of a terrorist organization at the complex.
As police sought to ensure calm, a top commander in Jerusalem stressed non-Muslims would be barred from visiting the Temple Mount during prayers.
The military has eased some restrictions on movement for West Bank and Gazan Palestinians to allow women, children and some men to pray there without permits.
“Jews will not be authorized to go up to the [Temple] Mount during Muslim prayer times,” Chief Superintendent Amir Ben-Kiki, the head of police operations in the capital, told Kan public radio.
For Palestinian Muslims, worship at the Al-Aqsa Mosque — the third-holiest site in Islam — is a central part of the festival. Jews revere the same site as the Temple Mount, the holiest site in Judaism as the location of the ancient Temples.
Meanwhile, Ben Gvir’s office announced he would attend a security briefing with police officers near the Temple Mount before giving a public statement.
Border Police said some 2,400 officers were deployed Friday to Jerusalem, the West Bank and elsewhere as part of the heightened security measures.
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