Tens of thousands of worshippers performed Friday prayers at Al Aqsa Mosque to mark the first Friday prayers of the fasting month of Ramadan.
This year was expected to mark the first time that Israeli authorities allowed the West Bank Palestinians to the Al Aqsa esplanade.
Approximately over 200,000 worshippers were in and around the compound, said Head of the Islamic Waqf which runs Al Aqsa, Sheikh Azzam.
Children under 12, men over 40, and women of all ages were allowed by the Israeli authorities to enter occupied East Jerusalem without permits, normally required to cross checkpoints and exit the territory.
Sacred to Muslims, Jerusalem is home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque which represents the world's third holiest site, the spot where Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) began his night Journey to heaven.
“It’s the first time I pray at Al-Aqsa Mosque in two years because Israel prohibits us from praying here,” Mohamed Maslmani, 43, told the media. “I missed the Old City of Jerusalem, the smell of the markets, and the lovely people.”
Salima Ahmad, 35, from the West Bank city of Jenin, told that she had cried when she entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.
“It's an indescribable feeling to pray in Al-Aqsa,” she said. “
The holy city’s markets opened early on Friday morning to receive thousands of worshipers from all over the West Bank.
“Thousands of people from all over the country entered Jerusalem since the morning, buying many things from the market,” Ahmad Gaith, 55, a merchant from Jerusalem’s Old City, told Anadolu Agency.
According to Sheikh Azzam al-Khatib, Director-General of Muslim endowments and Al-Aqsa affairs, some 220,000 worshipers had prayed at Al-Aqsa on the first Friday of Ramadan.
“It’s expected that around 100,000 worshipers from the West Bank and Gaza Strip will stay for Taraweeh prayers,” he said.
Israel occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank during the 1967 Middle East War. It later takes possession of the holy city in 1980, asserting it as the unified capital of the self-proclaimed Jewish state – a move not at all recognized by the international community.
[sourse-http://www.siasat.com/english/news/masjid-ul-aqsa-witnessed-220000-muslims-first-friday]
