Palestine and Egypt have condemned Israel's flag-raising parade in Jerusalem, as the Jewish state tries to prevent violence from extremists.
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| Israeli police prevent violence from extremists at the Jewish State Flag Parade in Jerusalem. (Source: AP) |
Palestinians in the Gaza Strip staged a violent protest against the national flag parade, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on May 18. Many Arabs threw explosives at the security fence. However, the announcement said no Israeli soldiers were injured.
The IDF then fired live ammunition, tear gas and other means to suppress these riots, injuring several Palestinians.
The Israeli flag parade is held to mark Jerusalem Day, the day the Jewish state took control of Jerusalem after the 1967 Six-Day War.
Israel has deployed heavy security to prevent violence after previous flag parades were marked by attacks on Palestinians and slogans demanding “death to Arabs”.
* For its part, the same afternoon, the Palestinian Authority (PA) strongly criticized Israel's activities to celebrate Jerusalem Day, including the national flag parade. They considered this a "desperate attempt" to demonstrate Israel's sovereignty over the city.
PA Prime Minister Muhammad Shttayeh said the parade was “provocative and ridiculous” and part of Israel’s efforts to “impose falsehoods on Jerusalem”.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian Foreign Ministry accused Israel of trying to change the demographic composition, legal status and historical status of Jerusalem.
* Also on May 18, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry criticized the intrusion of some Israeli officials, parliamentarians and Jewish settlers into the Al-Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem during the Israeli flag parade that morning.
Such irresponsible provocations increase tensions and aggravate frustration in the occupied territories, the ministry said.
Egypt reiterated its firm stance in support of the maintenance of the historical and legal status quo in Jerusalem and stressed that the Al-Aqsa Mosque is a purely Islamic holy site. Cairo also stressed that East Jerusalem is an integral part of the Palestinian territories illegally occupied by Israel since June 1967.
According to Egypt, this occupation violates international law and international community resolutions that do not recognize Israel's annexation of Palestinian territories.
Cairo calls for a two-state solution, under which a Palestinian state would be established on the basis of the June 4, 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.
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