5 Jews detained for attacking officers after trying to pray near Temple Mount

Police arrested five Jewish men in the Old City of Jerusalem early Thursday who clashed with officers and local residents after attempting to pray at an entrance to the Temple Mount, police said.

According to police, the five Jewish men arrived at the Council Gate in the Muslim Quarter in order to pray, whereupon they began to fight with a group of residents of the Old City.

After police arrived, the suspects refused the officers’ entreaties to leave and began to scuffle with the police, leading to their subsequent arrest.

Following their arrest, the men were brought in for questioning. Police said they were being investigated for disorderly conduct, interfering with a police officer, assault and making threats.

By law, under arrangements Israel instituted after capturing the area in the 1967 Six Day War, Jews are not allowed to pray at the Temple Mount, leading many religious Jews to instead pray at the numerous entrances to the holy site in the Old City’s Muslim Quarter.

Jewish prayer on the Temple Mount remains a contentious issue: Palestinian officials repeatedly claim Israel intends to allow prayer for Jews at the holiest place in Jerusalem, something Israel denies, and the site, the third holiest in Islam, has been the frequent scene of violent clashes between Muslims and police.

Since the week-long Passover holiday began Monday evening — which under Jewish law is one of the three pilgrimages during which Jews would flock to the Temple — at least some 1,800 people have visited the Temple Mount, according to the police.