20 Palestinians, including nine children, were killed in Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip on Monday, according to Hamas.
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The attacks took place in Beithanun, north of the Gaza Strip.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health reports that another 65 people were injured in the attacks.
Israel carried out the attacks in response to the firing of several rockets from the Gaza Strip under the responsibility of Hamas.
Israel has said it is carrying out repatriation airstrikes after dozens of missiles were fired.
However, local sources report that several Palestinians may have been killed by a rocket fired by militants.
Hamas rockets were fired after clashes between Palestinian worshipers and Israeli police at the Asa Mosque in Jerusalem on Monday, which injured more than 300 people.
Hundreds of people have stoned Israeli security forces on Monday morning. Israeli police, meanwhile, have used noise grenades, tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the crowd. Sporadic clashes also took place last night.
Tensions in the city have escalated, with Israelis celebrating the so-called Jerusalem Day, which fell on May 10 this year. This day commemorates the capture of East Jerusalem during the 1967 war.
The Aksa Mosque is the third most important Muslim shrine, but with the beginning of Ramadan, it has become the epicenter of violence.
In an effort to ease tensions, Israeli police have banned Jews from visiting the Aqsa Mosque Square, which the Jews consider to be the site of a biblical temple, on Jerusalem Day.
Tensions have been further exacerbated by the planned eviction of several Palestinian families from a neighborhood in East Jerusalem. An important lawsuit was planned today in a dispute over these properties, but in the light of recent events, it was postponed.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday defended the authorities’ response to the protests and riots.
“We uphold law and order – vigorously and responsibly,” Netanyahu said, promising to protect the freedom of religion of all religions.
All six Arab countries with diplomatic relations with Israel – Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan – have condemned Israel for its response to recent events.
Jordan’s King Abdullah II condemned “Israel’s abuses and the escalation of the situation at the Aqsa Mosque”. Jordan and Egypt summoned Israeli ambassadors on Sunday to protest.
The European Union (EU), Russia, the United States, the United Nations and Pope Francis have called on Israel and the Palestinians to remain peaceful.
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