Israel arrests three Turks in Jerusalem amid unrest

A Palestinian demonstrator hurls back a tear-gas canister fired by Israeli troops during clashes at a protest near the West Bank city of Nablus

Israeli authorities have arrested three Turkish tourists in Jerusalem over an incident that followed Muslim prayers at a flashpoint holy site, a police spokesman said on Saturday.

The spokesman did not elaborate on the circumstances of Friday’s arrests, which came as Israel confronted Palestinian protests against US President Donald Trump’s Dec. 6 recognition of Jerusalem as its capital.

The Turkish consulate in Jerusalem had no immediate comment.

Unverified bystander video appeared to show Israeli police detaining several fez-wearing men and boys in the walled Old City of East Jerusalem, which Israel captured in a 1967 war and which Palestinians want as capital of their own future state.

Although Trump left open the possibility of Israelis and Palestinians drawing up Jerusalem borders under a future peace deal, his announcement reversed decades of US reticence over the city’s status. Turkey has been a vocal opponent of his move.

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