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Israel plans to change Jerusalem al-Quds demographic make-up

Monday, 28 August 2017 10:09 AM [ Last Update: Monday, 28 August 2017 10:20 AM ]

Israeli border policeman walk outside the Dome of the Rock in the al-Aqsa mosque compound in the Old City of Jerusalem al-Quds on August 20, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

Israel plans to establish a new Jewish neighborhood in the city of Jerusalem al-Quds and to increase police presence in the city, a report says.

Israel's Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan, accompanied by the Israeli police chief, took a tour of the city on Sunday during which he visited Jewish districts in the occupied city, Palestine Today news agency reported.

The visit also included a provocative storming of the yards of al-Aqsa Mosque, according to Israel’s channel 7, which revealed that Erdan has a plan for the city, composed of two parts.

According to the report, the first part of the plan involves the deployment of 1,250 new policemen to Jerusalem al-Quds and the installation of thousands of cameras there, including in the Old City.

The new measures also include granting pay hikes to policemen working in the occupied Jerusalem al-Quds.

The other part of the plan would be the establishment of a Jewish neighborhood in the city, it added.

During his visit, Erdan reportedly claimed Israel's sovereignty over the occupied Jerusalem al-Quds

Tel Aviv has tried to change the demographic make-up of Jerusalem al-Quds over the past decades by constructing settlements, destroying historical sites and expelling the local Palestinian population. Palestinians say the Israeli measures are aimed at paving the way for the Judaization of the city.

The occupied Palestinian territories have witnessed new tensions ever since Israeli forces introduced restrictions on the entry of Palestinian worshipers into the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East Jerusalem al-Quds in August 2015.

More than 300 Palestinians have lost their lives at the hands of Israeli forces in tensions since the beginning of October 2015.

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