Jerusalem: Muslim elders urged worshippers to return to pray at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem on Thursday after Israel backed down in the face of 10 days of often-violent protests and removed all security measures it had installed at the site. More From Livemint »The extra security provoked days of unrest, with violent clashes on the streets of East Jerusalem. “The technical report showed that all obstacles the occupation (Israel) put outside Al-Aqsa mosque were removed,” said Abdel-Azeem Salhab, the head of the Waqf, the Jordanian-funded trust that oversees Jerusalem’s Muslim holy sites. “We praise this stand in the past two weeks outside Al-Aqsa and we want this stand to continue outside Al-Aqsa and now inside Al-Aqsa,” he said, urging worshippers to return to pray. But by taking the steps to bolster security, Israel was materially changing the sensitive status quo in the area, which has governed movement and religious practice for decades.

Source: Mint July 27, 2017 09:45 UTC