The Palestinian Authority on Tuesday accuses Israel of infringing on freedom of worship following restrictive measures imposed on services at the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron.
Israel has imposed restrictions on all religious services, regardless of the faith carrying them our, as part of the limitations placed on public gatherings with the aim of stemming the spread of the coronavirus.
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The PA's Wafa news agency claimed that the "Israeli occupation forces" prevented Palestinians from attending morning prayers at the Ibrahimi Mosque, the Arabic name for the Cave of the Patriarchs.
According to the report, the IDF has set up checkpoints, tightened its inspections along the roads leading to the site and prevented groups of over 50 people from entering the mosque or gathering outside the compound.
According to Israel National News, Hefzi Abu Sneineh, director of endowments for Hebron, condemned "the Israeli measures that strive to keep Muslim worshippers away from the site by closing the electronic gates and blocking residents' paths at military checkpoints."
He called the measures "an attack on the holy places of Islam" in contravention of international treaties on freedom of worship.
