Violent Friday

Israeli soldiers on
rooftop

Still very cold today though the sun is very bright and whoever stays under its rays will feel warm. The streets were quite subdued though, with only asian groups doing the usual tourist visits. The underlying tension was felt by all the locals. The usual busy Friday market at Damascus Gate was closed, many shops did not open ... and heavy military presence throughout. They were expecting trouble.

And trouble came at noon time. Muslims devotees in the Al Aqsa Mosque began chanting and confronting Israeli police who entered the Mosque esplanade. All this because yesterday some Israeli Jews entered the Mosque esplanade and tensions were ignited with the muslims inside.

Protesters clash with police

Today stun grenades and tear gas were fired in the esplanade area. It spilt out into the streets. More stun grenades and rubber bullets were fired in the streets ... there were soldiers stationed on rooftops of the Bab Hutta quarter. Chaos for a couple of hours. The Friday Way of the Cross was cancelled as a result for fear of violence on christians.

Well things are back to normal now. The security helicopter is still flying overhead but the streets are returning to its normal routine. Another weekend ahead ... who knows what it'll hold for us ...