Al-Azhar has condemned the Israeli occupation’s tearing and burning of copies of the Holy Quran in southern Nablus in Palestine. The religious institution also condemned the attack on innocent Palestinians in several Palestinian villages in the West Bank, stealing their property.
The largest Islamic religious academic institution in the world said that the Israeli occupation’s continued crimes in plain sight of the international community is a crime against humanity and a blatant violation of international law.
Al-Azhar stressed that the time has come for a serious and unified Arab and Islamic stance towards the Israeli occupation, which has committed and continues to commit the most heinous crimes against the Palestinian people. The religious institution also called for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with its capital in Jerusalem.
A few hours later, Israeli settlers torched at least two houses in the Palestinian village of Umm Safa near Ramallah. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
The Israeli military said one Israeli suspect had been arrested and that its forces used anti-riot measures to break up Palestinian stone-throwing that erupted at the village.
Violence has surged in the West Bank in recent weeks, with the Israeli military conducting regular sweeps leading to repeated clashes with Palestinian fighters amid a spate of Palestinian street attacks on Israelis.
The past few days saw deadly clashes in the city of Jenin, attacks on Palestinian villages by settlers, a rare Israeli air strike in the West Bank against militants, and a fatal shooting attack near a settlement.
