Israeli forces prevented thousands of people from the West Bank from entering Jerusalem to pray at the mosque on the last Friday of Ramadan Soldiers reportedly fired tear gas into crowds of thousands of worshippers at the mosque after dawn prayers; at least five people were arrested JEDDAH: The Organization of Islamic Cooperation strongly condemned Israeli forces for preventing thousands of people from entering Al-Aqsa Mosque on Friday. It also denounced a “blatant attack on worshippers in Al-Aqsa Mosque, by firing poison-gas bombs and tear gas at them inside its courtyards, which led to the injury and arrest of hundreds of them, in violation of all international norms, laws and human values.” Israeli forces prevented thousands of people from the West Bank from entering the occupied city of Jerusalem to pray at the mosque on the last Friday of Ramadan, the Jordan News Agency reported. Soldiers “imposed restrictions on the entry of worshippers into Al-Aqsa Mosque, checked the identities of young men at the entrances to the Old City and the doors of the mosque, and prevented a number of them from entering,” the agency said. They also turned away from checkpoints in Qalandiya and Bethlehem checkpoints dozens of elderly people who were on their way to the mosque, telling them they did not have the required permits. Fighting broke out in the Bab Al-Asbat area between Israeli soldiers and Palestinians who were on their way to pray. At least three men, whose names have not been revealed, were arrested. Meanwhile Israeli forces fired tear gas into crowds of thousands of worshippers at the mosque after dawn prayers, the news agency reported. At least five men were arrested. Israeli police said 3,600 officers were deployed in East Jerusalem on Friday amid expectations that tens of thousands of people would travel to Al-Aqsa Mosque to pray on the last Friday of the holy month. The Organization of Islamic Cooperation called on the international community to live up to its responsibilities by urging Israel to halt “all its repeated violations of freedom of worship and the sanctity of the holy places in occupied Jerusalem, stressing the necessity of preserving the existing historical and legal status in blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque.” It also reiterated the need to fully implement all UN resolutions to help end “the ongoing Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people, and ensure the access of humanitarian aid to all parts of the Gaza Strip.”