Israeli police shut all doors of 'Dome of the Rock,' prevent mosque access

Israeli police on Thursday shut all doors of al-Aqsa Mosque, preventing anyone from entering, according to a report by Anadolu Agency.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Sheikh Omar al-Kiswani, director of East Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque, said: "The repeated closure of Al-Aqsa Mosque's doors is unacceptable and the Israeli authorities should immediately stop this approach, which has turned into a policy."

Eyewitnesses told Anadolu Agency that Israeli police arrested a Palestinian man in the courtyard of the mosque.

For its part, the Israeli police said in a statement that an attempt to carry out a stabbing took place in the Old City of Jerusalem.

For Muslims, the Al-Aqsa represents the world's third holiest site. Jews, for their part, refer to the area as the “Temple Mount”, claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. It annexed the entire city in 1980, claiming it as the capital of the Jewish state -- a move never recognized by the international community.