Israeli police fatally shoot man at Jerusalem's holiest site

1/4/2023 18:53

        Israeli police shot and killed a man who they alleged tried to snatch an officer's gun at an entrance to a Jerusalem holy site early Saturday, raising fears of further violence during a time of heightened tensions at the flashpoint compound.
        
        Palestinian worshippers at the entrance to the site on Saturday morning had a different account, saying that police shot the man at least 10 times after he tried to prevent them from harassing a woman who was on her way to the holy compound.
        
        The police said the slain man was 26-year-old Mohammed Alasibi from Hura, a Bedouin Arab village in southern Israel. The village council called for a thorough investigation of his killing and a general strike Saturday in protest.
        
        Hours after the incident, the muddy stone alleyway leading to Al-Aqsa Mosque was still stained with blood. Israeli Arab politicians identified Alasibi as a physician who had recently passed his exams and earned his M.D. in Romania.
        
        They widely condemned his killing and demanded that Israeli police release security camera footage of the incident.