Palestinian guards scuffled with Israeli police on Temple Mount after a Jewish policeman refused to remove his kippa before entering the site
Firas Dibs, a spokesman for the Waqf Islamic authority that oversees the site, said dozens of Arab worshipers scuffled with police after the guards closed the doors to the mosque, preventing anyone from entering. He said the director of the mosque was lightly wounded.
"This morning a number of local individuals on the Temple Mount closed and locked the doors of the Dome of the Rock, preventing police from entering. Police units remained at the scene outside until the doors were opened several hours later from those who had locked the doors," police said in a statement.
Five people were detained for questioning, the statement added.
Dibs said Israel police carry out routine security checks every morning, and that the policeman was only prevented from entering because he was wearing a yarmulke.
Under an arrangement in place since Israel's victory in the 1967 war, non-Muslims are allowed to visit the site but not pray there.
Jews are allowed to enter during limited hours, with police officers guiding them through a predetermined route. The Jewish worshipers are banned from praying, displaying religious symbols or raising the Israeli flag on the mount.
The gold-domed shrine is part of the Al-Aqsa mosque complex, which is consideredr as the 3rd holiest site in Islam after Mecca and Medina. It is the holiest site for Jews, who refer to it as the Temple Mount because it was the location of the two biblical temples.
Video of the incident -
https://twitter.com/NTarnopolsky/status/1084816767724281856?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1084816767724281856&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.timesofisrael.com%2Fpalestinians-israeli-police-scuffle-on-temple-mount%2F