Saudi Arabia condemns attacks by Israeli forces at Al-Aqsa

Israeli security forces deploy in Jerusalem's al-Aqsa mosque compound on May 10, 2021. (AFP)
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Updated 11 May 2021
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Saudi Arabia condemns attacks by Israeli forces at Al-Aqsa

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has condemned attacks carried out by Israeli forces at Al-Aqsa, a foreign ministry statement said early Tuesday.
The actions have caused concern in the Muslim world as the site is one of the most religious in Islam. 
The Saudi ministry of foreign affairs strongly condemns the attacks carried out by the occupation forces at Al-Aqsa mosque transgressing the safety and security of the worshippers, the statement said.
Saudi Arabia urged the international community to hold Israel accountable for the escalation of the events and calls for the immediate cessation of any exacerbation violating the international pacts and treaties, it added.
In the Gaza Strip, Palestinian authorities have reported the deaths of 20 people, including nine children, as Israel attacked militants who fired rockets at Jerusalem. 
Police fired tear gas and stun grenades inside Al-Aqsa Mosque and at least three Palestinians lost an eye after being struck by plastic bullets that witnesses said were aimed directly at their heads.
Tensions on the Gaza Strip border with Israel continued to mount following recent violent confrontations at the mosque and in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of Jerusalem.
More than a dozen tear gas canisters and stun grenades landed in the mosque as police and protesters faced off inside the walled compound that surrounds it. Smoke rose in front of the mosque and the golden-domed shrine on the site, and rocks littered the nearby plaza. Inside one area of the compound, shoes and debris lay scattered over ornate carpets.
The mosque is in a hilltop compound that is the third-holiest site in Islam and the holiest in Judaism. Tensions at the site, known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as the Temple Mount, have triggered repeated bouts of violence in the past.

— With input from AP


Saudi and New Zealand foreign ministers discussed Mideast situation

Updated 10 March 2026
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Saudi and New Zealand foreign ministers discussed Mideast situation

RIYADH: Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan discussed the current situation in the Middle East with New Zealand’s Foreign Minister Winston Peters, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
Peters expressed New Zealand’s condemnation of Iran’s indiscriminate attacks on the Kingdom and thanked Riyadh for its efforts to protect foreign nationals, including New Zealanders inside the Kingdom.
The Saudi military has shot down numerous missiles and drones fired by Tehran toward the Kingdom since the US and Israel began a large-scale military campaign against Iran on Feb. 28.
The Saudi Defense Ministry said early Tuesday that it had shot down a ballistic missile in the Eastern Province after knocking out several drones targeting the Shaybah oil field in the Empty quarter on Friday evening.