As authorities were finishing up their preparations for the annual volatile event that is scheduled for Thursday in Jerusalem’s Old City, the Palestinian terror group Hamas made a threat to Israel on Wednesday against holding the Jerusalem Day Flag March.
“The Zionist Banner Walk won’t pass, and the reaction will unavoidably come,” said senior Hamas official Salah al-Bardawil in a proclamation.
Meanwhile, Gaza’s so-called balloon unit, thought to be affiliated with Hamas and responsible for launching balloons carrying explosive and incendiary items into Israel in the past, announced that it would resume operations on Thursday.
The Ibna al-Zuwari group announced in a statement posted on its Telegram channel that riots were also planned along the Gaza border.
The dubious patriot march through the Old City of Jerusalem is set for Thursday, when a huge number of Jewish Israelis are supposed to walk through the Old City — including the Muslim Quarter — waving Israeli banners.
After five days of bloody conflict, Israel and the terrorist organization Palestinian Islamic Jihad had reached a ceasefire agreement less than a week earlier.
Security personnel believe that rocket fire from Gaza during the march is highly unlikely. Be that as it may, a few authorities have dreaded a rehash of 2021, when Hamas terminated rockets toward Jerusalem similarly as the walk was beginning, igniting more than seven days of battling among Israel and Gazan fear gatherings. According to the Shehab news agency, which is affiliated with Hamas, a Palestinian flag-waving march was anticipated to take place on Thursday east of Gaza City near the border.
In September 2021, the Israeli Air Force responded by bombing Hamas sites after Palestinians launched incendiary balloons into southern Israel, causing dozens of fires.
Since Hamas remained out of the conflict with Islamic Jihad, it was unknown whether the balloon unit would authorize attacks on Israel.
Thousands of mostly Orthodox people march from Independence Park to the Western Wall at the annual religious nationalist rally to commemorate Israel’s 1967 Six Day War reunification of East and West Jerusalem. Over the years, the Jerusalem Day march has gained notoriety because it is frequently marred by hate speech and violence.
In the interim, Public safety Priest Itamar Ben Gvir held a situational evaluation with top police metal in front of Jerusalem Day and the Banner Walk.
The far-right politician stated that he would “enable complete freedom of movement for Jews throughout Jerusalem” as his “very clear” policy. “All the threats of terrorism, thuggery, and provocations must be removed as soon as possible,” he added.
That’s what he recognized “there will presumably be some who attempt to upset the festival,” communicating certainty that police would obstruct this. Ben Gvir outlined his vision for Jerusalem Day, stating that Thursday will be “a Flag March, a celebratory march, Jews ascending the Temple Mount without anyone thinking they can be threatened or harmed.” What’s more, mostly, a message to the entire world that the Israel Police shields Jerusalem. With God’s assistance, Jerusalem will be shaded tomorrow in blue and white with extraordinary euphoria.”
Although reports have stated that Ben Gvir is likely to attend, it was not yet clear if he would participate in the Flag March or if he would enter the Temple Mount, as he has done on previous Jerusalem Days prior to becoming a minister.
Jordan and the Palestinians, who saw Ben Gvir’s move as a provocation due to his extremist views and newfound power, viewed Ben Gvir’s first visit as a minister to the flashpoint holy site in January as his only visit to date.
The Sanctuary Mount is the holiest area in Judaism, while Muslims adore the Al Aqsa Mosque compound, or the Respectable Safe-haven, as their third-holiest site. Palestinians have alleged for a century that Israel intends to take over the site and destroy its mosques, a claim that the Jewish state has consistently vehemently denied. Many of them deny any Jewish connection to the site, where Jews have prayed for millennia. Jews are only permitted to enter the site during limited hours on weekdays under numerous restrictions and with police guiding them through a predetermined route, whereas Muslims are typically permitted to enter the site relatively freely under loosely defined understandings known as the status quo. They also purportedly prohibited praying, though police have increasingly permitted silent prayers during visits in recent years.
A spokesperson for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas stated on Wednesday that the calls for Jews to visit the site the following day were “dangerous.” Palestinian groups have urged Muslims to gather en masse at the Temple Mount in advance of Jerusalem Day.
This year’s march’s timing is especially delicate due to the recent ceasefire that Israel and Iran-backed Islamic Jihad have been under since early Sunday. The fighting that lasted for days and saw nearly 1,500 rockets fired at Israel from Gaza ended with the ceasefire.
In excess of 2,000 cops will get the disputable walk, alongside in excess of 1,000 other security staff who will guarantee that different occasions in the capital over the course of the day are enough safeguarded, the power reported Tuesday evening.
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