The Israeli occupation police said that the Passover celebrations, which begin Wednesday evening and last for a week, will be held this year in an "exceptional and limited" format, explaining that the general public will not be allowed access to the Western Wall (which it calls the "Western Wall").
She added in a statement that she would close a number of entrances to Jerusalem to vehicles and pedestrians, and would stop public transportation leading to the site, noting that the “priestly blessing” ceremony would be held with the participation of only 50 priests, according to prior registration.
These measures come amid the continued closure of Al-Aqsa Mosque and the imposition of restrictions on prayer at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre since the start of the war on Iran, under the pretext of security instructions that prevent gatherings, as prayer at Al-Aqsa is only permitted for guards and employees of the Waqf Department, despite Arab and Islamic demands to reopen it.
In contrast, public life in the occupied West Bank was paralyzed on Wednesday by a general strike called for by the Fatah movement, in protest against the Knesset's approval of a law to execute Palestinian prisoners.
Shops, businesses, banks, schools, and universities closed their doors, while hospitals and bakeries were exempted from the strike. The streets of major cities like Ramallah appeared deserted.
On Tuesday, the Fatah movement announced a general strike in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday in protest against the law that would allow the execution of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. In a statement, Fatah said the strike was part of efforts to overturn the law, which it described as "targeting the entire Palestinian people and constituting a dangerous escalation and a blatant violation."
The Knesset's approval on Monday of a bill stipulating the imposition of the death penalty on Palestinian prisoners has sparked widespread discontent and a wave of outrage worldwide.
The bill allows for the issuance of a death sentence without the need for a request from the Public Prosecution, and does not require unanimity in the decision, as it can be taken by a simple majority, while granting the Minister of Defense the right to express his opinion before the court.
The law applies to “those accused of deliberately killing Israelis,” numbering 117 in Israeli prisons, according to the Palestinian Prisoners and Freed Prisoners Affairs Authority (official).
The law faced internal criticism, as some 1,200 Israeli figures, including Nobel laureates, former army officials and former Supreme Court justices, announced their strong opposition to it last February, considering it a "moral stain".
More than 9,500 Palestinians, including 350 children and 73 women, are held in Israeli prisons. According to Palestinian and Israeli human rights organizations, they suffer from torture, starvation, and medical neglect, which has led to the death of dozens of them.
Since October 2023, Israel has escalated its measures against Palestinian prisoners, coinciding with the US-backed war of extermination on the Gaza Strip, which resulted in more than 72,000 martyrs and 172,000 wounded, most of whom were children and women.
