What is the Jerusalem Al Aqsa mosque controversy?

Jerusalem is considered to be one of the holiest cities in the world by three religions - Christianity, Judaism and Islam. All three religions have their holy shrines in the older part of the city, and clashes have often erupted between Palestinians and Israelis over who has the true claim to the land.

On Sunday, Israeli Police faced off with Palestinians holed up inside Jerusalem's Al Aqsa mosque, as hundreds of Jews visited the holy compound ahead of the Jewish nationalist march through the heart of the Old City, reported Reuters.

About 70,000 Jewish Israelis paraded through the streets, police said, for an annual 'flag march' marking Israel's 1967 capture of east Jerusalem. Some marchers chanted 'death to Arabs', as a number of Palestinians hurled projectiles from the rooftops, reported AP.

We take a look at why the Al Aqsa mosque has been at the centre of controversy in recent times and the history behind it.

RECENT CONTROVERSY

• On April 16, over 150 Palestinians were injured in clashes with Israeli riot police inside Jerusalem's Al Aqsa mosque. Israeli Police had said that hundreds of Palestinians hurled firecrackers and stones at their forces which led to retaliation by them. 
• Most injuries were incurred from rubber bullets, stun grenades and beatings with police batons. Tensions this year have been heightened in part by Ramazan coinciding with the Jewish celebration of Passover.

• The clashes on Sunday started as Jews started their annual procession where they celebrated Israel's capture of the Old City in the 1967 Middle East war. Palestinians had warned that the parade could reignite their decades-old conflict with Israelis.
• Hours before the march, police locked some Palestinians inside a mosque on the Al-Aqsa compound as Jewish visitors arrived for daily tours of the compound. Some Palestinians threw stones and shot fireworks towards police, who responded with stun grenades, reported Reuters.
• Israel's far-right nationalist lawmaker Itamar Ben Gvir, who was among those who went to Al-Aqsa, later said his visit aimed 'to reaffirm that we, the State of Israel, are sovereign' in the holy city, reported AFP.

THE HISTORY

• For Muslims, the mosque is the third-holiest site in Islam. The Al Aqsa Mosque, also known as al-Haram al-Sharif, is believed by Muslims to be the structure from where the Prophet Muhammad ascended to heaven, reported Al Jazeera.

• The compound is also the holiest site for Jews, who call it the Temple Mount and revere it as the home of the biblical temples. 
• Jews believe the compound is where the Biblical Jewish temples once stood. But Jewish law and the Israeli Rabbinate forbid Jews from entering the compound and praying there, as it is considered too holy to tread upon.

• The compound’s Western Wall, known as the Wailing Wall to Jews, is believed to be the last remnant of the Second Temple, while Muslims refer to it as al-Buraq Wall and believe it is where the Prophet Muhammad tied al-Buraq, the animal upon which he ascended to the sky and spoke to God, reported Al Jazeera.
• The claims to the site has led to Israeli-Palestinian conflict and have triggered numerous rounds of violence, even wars. The compound is situated in East Jerusalem, which was captured by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war.
• Israel claims all of Jerusalem as its eternal capital but the Palestinians seek to make East Jerusalem, including its Muslim, Christian and Jewish holy sites, the capital of a future state, reported Reuters.