Jerusalem: Israeli police block Al-Quds University graduation ceremony, detain Palestinian students, academics

Israeli police on Monday prevented a graduation ceremony for students at Al-Quds University in Jerusalem and detained several students and academics.

The Palestinian Jerusalem Governorate said in a statement that an Israeli force raided Khan Tankiz in the Qattanin Market near Al-Aqsa Mosque and prevented a graduation ceremony for a number of Al-Quds University students.

It said Israeli forces detained Dr Youssef al-Natsheh, director of the Al-Quds Studies Centre at Al-Quds University, Raed Saadeh, head of the Jerusalem Tourism Cluster, Jerusalem-based artist Hossam Abu Aisha, and Jerusalem resident Hassan al-Louzi.

The governorate said they were taken to the intelligence service’s Room 4 for questioning.

Since the outbreak of Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip in October 2023, the occupied West Bank, including Jerusalem, has seen a continued escalation in Israeli army raids and attacks on Palestinians, alongside a rise in settler violence.

Palestinians say Israel has for decades intensified policies aimed at Judaising East Jerusalem, including Al-Aqsa Mosque, and erasing its Arab and Islamic identity.

Palestinians regard East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state, citing international resolutions that do not recognise Israel’s occupation of the city in 1967 or its annexation in 1980.