Israel marked 50 years of Jerusalem occupation
Thousands of Israelis marched through east Jerusalem’s Old City on Wednesday to commemorate 50 years since the Jewish state seized control of it in the Six-Day War.
More than 60,000 people were expected to take part in the Jerusalem Day event, culminating in celebrations at the Western Wall, police said, up from between 30,000 to 40,000 in previous years. The wall is the holiest site where Jews can pray.
Singing, dancing and waving blue-and-white Israeli flags, crowds of mainly religious Jews marched through the lanes of Palestinian areas, while some crossed the walled Old City’s Jewish Quarter.
Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said “several hundred” police officers were deployed to keep the peace. A few hundred Israeli peace activists held a protest against what they branded the “March of Hatred”.
Ari Fuld, an Israeli participant in the anniversary celebrations, carrying a handgun, said it was a “miraculous day” for Jews. “Today we are celebrating the unification of Jerusalem. Before 1967, there was a wall and Jews could not enter any of the gates, let alone pray at the Western Wall.”
Source: Al Arabiya
