Jordanians rally in solidarity with Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa

By Laith al-Junaidi</p> <p>IRBID, Jordan (AA) – Hundreds of people demonstrated on Friday in Jordan’s northern Irbid province to express solidarity with Palestine amid continued Israeli violations against Jerusalem’s iconic Al-Aqsa Mosque.</p> <p>Organized by Jordan’s Islamic Movement, along with political parties and professional syndicates, marchers set out after Friday prayers from downtown Irbid’s Hashimi Mosque.</p> <p>“With our souls and blood, we are ready to sacrifice ourselves for Al-Aqsa,” protesters chanted. “The people of Jordan and Palestine share one book [the Quran] and one faith.”</p> <p>Similar marches and demonstrations were also reported in other Jordanian provinces Friday.</p> <p>Tension has mounted in occupied East Jerusalem since last month, when Israeli police briefly sealed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound’s Al-Rahma Gate, triggering angry demonstrations by local Palestinians.</p> <p>In the weeks since, the Israeli authorities have banned scores of Palestinians — including religious officials — from entering the mosque complex, which for Muslims represents the world’s third holiest site. </p> <p>Israel occupied East Jerusalem, in which the Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. It annexed the entire city in 1980 in a move never recognized by the international community.