רמה כ ז מל ו תשר מה ו ד י ע י ן ( למ מ" ) כרמ ז מה י עד מל ו ד י ע י ן ול רט ו ר News of Terrorism and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (July 14-20, 2021) Overview The Temple Mount, Jerusalem: On July 18, 2021, Tisha B'Av in the Jewish calendar,1 more than 1,000 Jews entered the Temple Mount, heavily secured by Israeli police. Palestinians clashed with Israeli police forces before the Temple Mount compound was opened for the Jews. The presence of Jewish worshippers ("the storming of settlers") enraged the Palestinians, who viewed it as a violation of the status quo on the Temple Mount and an Israeli provocation. Jordan, Turkey and Egypt condemned the presence of Jews on the Temple Mount, calling it a violation as al-Aqsa's historical, legal and international status, and the EU legation in the Palestinian territories also expressed concern over the event. Judea and Samaria: The Israeli security forces detained several dozen operatives from a Hamas student cell in Birzeit University who organized a visit to the recently-demolished house of Palestinian terrorist operative Muntaser Shalabi in the village of Turmus Aya. According to the Israeli security forces, some of them had been directly involved in terrorist activities. In Judea and Samaria Palestinians continued throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails at Israeli civilians, communities and vehicles on the roads. This past week rocks were also thrown at Israeli vehicles in east Jerusalem. The Gaza Strip: Mohammed al-Emadi, chairman of Qatar's National Committee for the Reconstruction of Gaza, left the Gaza Strip after a visit of several days. He visited both Israel and the Gaza Strip in an effort to find a way to deliver Qatar's money to the Gaza Strip. Isma'il Haniyeh, head of Hamas' political bureau, and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) leader Ziyad al-Nakhalah, congratulated the newly-elected Iranian president, Ebrahim Raisi. Raisi said the strategic connections between Iran and the Palestinian "resistance" and people were firmly established. As for the most recent round of hostilities, he said the Palestinian "victory" [sic] had turned over a new leaf in the Palestinian-Israeli confrontation, calling the "resistance" [i.e., the Palestinian terrorist organizations] strategically capable of resolving the Palestinian issue. The Palestinian Authority (PA): Contacts with the United States continue. PA Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh met with Hady Amr, deputy assistant secretary for Israeli and Palestinian Tisha B'Av, the ninth day of the Hebrew month of Av, marks the destruction of the Second Temple, of 1 which only the Western Wall ("Wailing Wall") remains. It is Judaism's holiest site., where Jews have gone to pray for hundreds of years. 118-21 2 affairs in the American State Department's Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs. After the meeting Amr told UNRWA that an agreement had been reached for UNRWA-United States cooperation, and America would give UNRWA an additional $135.8 million. Coronavirus : The ministry of health in Ramallah transferred about 110,000 doses to coronavirus vaccine to the Gaza Strip. China and Egypt announced they would jointly donate 500,000 doses. Judea and Samaria Tisha B'Av events on the Temple Mount On July 18, 2021, Tisha B'Av in the Jewish calendar, more than 1,000 Jews entered the Temple Mount, heavily secured by Israeli police. On the eve of Tisha B'Av Hamas called on the Palestinian public to go en masse to al-Aqsa mosque to "protect and defend" it. Hamas also called for Palestinians in the Gaza Strip to "keep their fingers on the trigger" (Shehab, July 16, 2021). Both Hamas and the PIJ warned Israel not to test the "firm stance of the resistance" (Filastin al-Yawm, July 16, 2021). Shortly before the Temple Mount was opened, Palestinians at the site rioted and clashed with Israeli police forces. The police entered the Temple Mount compound and dispersed the rioters. Muslims clean the Temple Mount compound and clear the rocks thrown at the Israeli police forces during the riot (Twitter account of journalist Hassan Aslih, July 18, 2018). Right: The Palestinian media gave extensive coverage to the entrance of Jewish visitors on the Temple Mount (Wafa, July 18, 2021). Left: The Temple Mount about to boil over (Alaa' al-Laqta's Facebook page, July 18, 2021). 118-21 3 Riots were also held in east Jerusalem. Near the Damascus Gate Palestinians threw rocks at passing vehicles. Three members of a family, including a baby, were injured and evacuated to a hospital. In the neighborhood of a-Tor Palestinians also threw rocks at Israeli vehicles. The driver of one of the vehicles was injured by flying glass (Israel Police Force spokesman's unit, July 18, 2021). The vehicle after the attack near the Damascus Gate (United Hatzalah, July 19, 2021). The entrance of the Jews into the Temple Mount (the so-called "storming of the settlers") enraged the Palestinians, who viewed it as a violation of the status quo and an Israeli "provocation." The Palestinian foreign ministry expressed concern over the events, as did the EU legation in the Palestinian Authority territories. Jordan, Turkey and Egypt condemned the event, which they claimed violated the historical, legal and international status of al-Aqsa mosque. The Palestinians said the following: Mahmoud Abbas' office issued a strong condemnation and warned of a "dangerous Israeli escalation as settlers stormed the open area in front of al-Aqsa mosque, protected by occupation forces, while closing the Old City to Palestinians." The office called it a "dangerous threat" to security and stability, and an attack on Palestinian sentiments. The Israeli government, according to Mahmoud Abbas' office, was responsible for the "escalation," claiming "Israeli provocations" defied the American demands to preserve the status quo in Jerusalem (Wafa, July 18, 2021). PA Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh called on the international community to put a stop to Israel's "violations", which offend Palestinian sentiments feelings, [allegedly] threaten regional and global security, peace and stability, and violate agreements in place since 1967 (Sawa, July 18, 2021). Hussein al-Sheikh, minister of civilian affairs, tweeted that the "storming" of al-Aqsa mosque had been an Israeli political decision intended to establish the "occupation's" presence, and indicated the dangerous direction the new Israeli government was taking (Wafa, July 18, 2021). 118-21 4 Mahmoud al-Habash, Mahmoud Abbas' advisor for religious matters, said Israel ("the occupier state") had no religious, historical or legal right to any part of Jerusalem or al-Aqsa mosque, and that its attempts to forcefully divide the [Temple Mount] compound would fail. He demanded that international institutions and the UN Security Council impose sanctions on Israel for the "war crimes" it committed in Jerusalem, especially its "ongoing aggression" against al-Aqsa mosque (Wafa, July 18, 2021). Hamas also reacted strongly. Muhammad Hamada, Hamas spokesman for Jerusalem affairs, said the position of Hamas was clear and that an attack on al-Aqsa mosque and [Israel's] continuing "invasions" would lead to violent reprisals from the "resistance" [i.e., the Palestinian terrorist organizations]. He called on the Palestinian people to go to Jerusalem, stand on guard in the open space in front of al-Aqsa mosque and in the alleys of the Old City, and remain mobilized in preparation for Eid al-Adha (Hamas forum, July 18, 2021). Tareq Salami, PIJ spokesman in Jerusalem, said [operation] "Sword of Jerusalem" [i.e., Operation Guardian of the Walls] would not end and the Palestinian people were prepared to defend al-Aqsa mosque and Jerusalem, regardless of the cost (Filastin al-Yawm, July 19, 2021). Palestinian reaction to a statement made by the prime minister of Israel After the events on the Temple Mount, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett thanked the Israeli police for "preserving freedom of worship for the Jews on the Temple Mount." The statement infuriated the Muslims, and the office of the prime minister clarified the issue, saying the choice of words had been unfortunate and no change had been made in the status quo of the Temple Mount. Mahmoud Abbas rushed to issue his absolute opposition to the statement made by Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett. He said it would provoke a dangerous religious struggle, for which Israel would be responsible (Wafa, July 19, 2021). Detention of Hamas operatives The Israel security forces detained several dozen operatives of a Hamas cell in the student association at Birzeit University. They were detained in Turmus Aya, a village north of Ramallah, after they went to visit the remains of the house of Palestinian terrorist operative Muntaser Shalabi, which had been demolished by the Israeli security forces. According to the Israeli security forces some of the operatives had been directly involved in terrorist activities which included transferring funds, incitement and organizing Hamas activity in Judea and Samaria. They were taken for interrogation (IDF spokesman, July 14, 2021). Hamas condemned the detention of its Birzeit University operatives, noting they had been detained while visiting the remains of a house demolished by the Israeli security forces (Hamas website, July 15, 2021). 118-21 5 The visit was organized by the Hamas cell in the Birzeit University student association, which issued an invitation to students to participate in a visit to "the family of the hero who carried out the heroic attack at the Zaatra [Tapuah] Junction." In addition, according to the invitation, "Your presence is a national obligation" (Facebook page of the Islamic Bloc in Birzeit University, July 12, 2021). Call to students to visit the family of Muntaser Shalabi (Facebook page of the Islamic Bloc in Birzeit University, July 12, 2021).