BAGHDAD: Four people were killed in clashes among rival Shiite Muslim militants in the southern Iraqi city of Basra that took place overnight and on Thursday morning, local security officials said.
It was the latest violence to hit the country in a political crisis that pits followers of the powerful Shiite cleric Moqtada Al-Sadr against mostly Iran-aligned parties and paramilitary groups.
The security officials said the clashes took place in the center of Basra, Iraq’s main oil-producing hub. Two of those killed were members of Sadr’s Peace Brigades militia, they said.
Violence re-erupted in Iraq this week as armed supporters of Sadr fought with security forces and Iran-aligned gunmen in Baghdad in the fiercest street battles the capital has seen for years.
An intractable political deadlock between the two rival Shiite camps has left Iraq without a government since an October election. It has also deepened dysfunction and instability as Iraqis struggle to move on from decades of war, sanctions, civil strife and endemic corruption.
Clashes in Iraq’s Basra among Shiite rivals cause casualties
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Clashes in Iraq’s Basra among Shiite rivals cause casualties
- The skirmishes were the latest violence to hit the country in a political crisis that pits followers of the powerful cleric Moqtada Al-Sadr against mostly Iran-aligned parties and paramilitary groups
Controversial Israeli minister enters area around Al-Aqsa Mosque on first Friday of Ramadan
- Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir is seen making provocative remarks directed at Palestinians in presence of Israeli police
- It comes amid heightened Israeli security and restrictions on Palestinians entering the mosque, despite which an estimated 80,000 people attend first Friday prayers of the holy month
JERUSALEM: Israel’s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, entered the area around Al-Aqsa Mosque on Friday, coinciding with the first Friday prayers of Ramadan.
Footage shared on social media showed him arriving through the Moroccan Gate, accompanied by the Israeli police commissioner, Daniel Levy, and the Jerusalem District police commander, Avshalom Peled.
Ben-Gvir was seen making provocative remarks directed at Palestinians in the presence of Israeli police officers, the Palestinian Wafa news agency reported.
The Moroccan Gate, located near Al-Buraq Wall, is one of the main entrances to Al-Aqsa and has been under Israeli control since 1967. It is regularly used by Israeli forces and settlers to access the mosque compound.
Jerusalem Governorate said the minister’s actions came amid heightened Israeli security measures and tighter restrictions on Palestinian in occupied Jerusalem during Ramadan.
Despite this, an estimated 80,000 worshippers attended the first Friday prayers of Ramadan at Al-Aqsa Mosque, according to figures provided by the Islamic Waqf Department in Jerusalem.
From early in the morning, Israeli forces imposed strict controls on Palestinians traveling from the West Bank to Jerusalem. Dozens of elderly worshippers were reportedly turned back at the Qalandia and Bethlehem checkpoints after being told they lacked the necessary permits.
Security forces also briefly detained four paramedics and disrupted the work of journalists and medical teams at Qalandia, witnesses said.
Additional security measures were also enforced at entrances to Jerusalem’s Old City and the gates of Al-Aqsa, with young men subjected to identity checks and a number of worshippers denied access.
