At least 90 Palestinians were wounded on Saturday night when Israeli police cracked down on protesters outside occupied East Jerusalem’s Old City.

Al Jazeera reports that 90 000 Muslim worshippers prayed at the Al-Aqsa Mosque on Saturday night during Islam’s holy night of Laylat al-Qadr or the “Night of Power”, and that some remained to protest the plan to expel Palestinian families from their homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem to make way for Israeli settlers.

Al Jazeera reports stun grenades and water cannon were used by Israeli police on horseback and in riot gear. Palestinians responded by hurling rocks at them, and lighting fires. Protestors tore down police barricades in the streets leading to the walled Old City’s gates.

Israeli security forces are on high alert for a further escalation on Sunday ahead of what Israelis call Jerusalem Day: the day East Jerusalem was occupied in 1967. According to Al Jazeera roughly 30 000 Jewish settlers are to march towards Damascus Gate in the Old City on Monday. The parade is widely perceived as provocative. The gate will be closed to Palestinians until 7:30pm.  Police will be present in the thousands.

Despite the escalating tensions and violence, police spokesman Eli Levi said the march would not be called off. Meanwhile, Amos Gilad, a former senior military official, told Army Radio the parade should be cancelled or rerouted away from the Old City’s Damascus Gate. He added, “the powder keg is burning and can explode at any time”. The parade will also coincide with a decision expected to be delivered by Israel’s Supreme Court regarding dozens of Palestinians who are resisting Israeli settler attempts to evict them from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah.

On Friday, more than 200 worshippers were injured, when Israeli forces stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque and fired rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas, and stun grenades at Palestinians. An Arab Israeli NGO called on senior Israeli officials to order security forces to stop the “violent incursions” into the Al-Aqsa Mosque as well as to stop  using excessive force against Palestinian worshippers and medical personnel.

Umm Muhammed Umar