AL-QUDS: Israeli police declared Friday’s Muslim prayers will not be held at Jerusalem’s holiest site after three Israelis were wounded in an alleged shooting near the site.
The ancient, marble-and-stone compound houses the Al Aqsa Mosque, Islam’s third-holiest site, and the 7th century Dome of the Rock. Thousands pray there every Friday.
The decision came after three gunmen allegedly opened fire at police near the site on Friday, wounding three Israelis, two of them critically, before the attackers were killed by security forces, Israeli police said.
The gunmen arrived at the sacred site, known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as Temple Mount, and walked towards one of the Old City gates nearby, police spokeswoman Luba Simri said.
“When they saw policemen they shot towards them and then escaped towards one of the mosques in the Temple Mount compound,” Simri said.
No details were immediately available on the identity of the attackers.
