Amman, Apr. 10 (Petra)-- Tens of thousands of worshipers performed the first Friday prayer at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem, after it had been closed and prayers were barred there for 40 days under the pretext of the war with Iran.

The Jerusalem Islamic Awqaf Department said that approximately 100,000 worshipers performed Friday prayer at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, according to Palestinian media reports.

Large crowds began gathering in the mosque’s courtyards from early morning, marking the first opportunity to perform Friday prayers inside the compound in weeks. The courtyards were filled with worshipers of all ages, in scenes reflecting the strong longing of Palestinians to return to the mosque after a prolonged forced closure.

Palestinian sources reported that Israeli occupation forces were heavily deployed across the streets of occupied Jerusalem, erecting iron barriers at the gates of the Jerusalem Old City and Al-Aqsa Mosque. Security forces stopped young men, checked identities, and detained some of them.

They also prevented worshipers who had previously been barred from entering Al-Aqsa Mosque from praying near the compound or along Al-Mujahideen Road at Lions Gate in the Old City of Jerusalem.

//Petra// MF