Israeli Defense Minister, Ehud Barak, ordered a full siege on Jerusalem and the West Bank starting on Thursday night after night. His decision was made after the Israeli Police warned of the possibility of clashes in Jerusalem. The police claimed receiving intelligence info regarding potential clashes in the Old City.
The police estimated that should clashes take place in Jerusalem they would likely spread to the rest of the West Bank.
Thousands of policemen were deployed in the Old City of Jerusalem while the army intensified its presence and closure in the West Bank.
Soldiers and policemen installed roadblocks in several parts of East Jerusalem and around it, and were deployed around the Al Aqsa Mosque.
Men below age 50 will not be allowed into the Al Aqsa Mosque. Hundreds of residents from Jerusalem headed to the Al Aqsa mosque to conduct dawn prayers but the police
only allowed Palestinians over the age of 50 to cross.
This issue forces Hundreds of residents to conduct dawn prayers in the street of the Old City.
