Israeli police raided the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem for a second straight night, attacking and forcibly removing Palestinians who were praying during the holy month of Ramadan. Police deployed stun grenades and fired rubber-coated steel bullets at worshipers. Earlier today, Israeli police escorted dozens of Israeli settlers into the Al-Aqsa courtyards. Meanwhile, witnesses say Palestinian men under the age of 40 are being barred from entering the mosque. Rockets were fired from the occupied Gaza Strip in response to the latest attack. On Wednesday, Israeli jets struck Gaza following another rocket fire in protest of the raid. Demonstrations took place in Gaza, Turkey, Jordan and elsewhere as international officials condemned the Israeli attacks on Al-Aqsa and warned against further acts of violence as Passover and Ramadan overlap. This is Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations.

Riyad Mansour: “The Israeli occupying authorities has no right whatsoever ever to tell people when to pray and when not to pray.”