Jerusalem Day honors the day when Israeli forces took control of the city in the 1967 war, with an occupation of East Jerusalem that continues to this day – and is a key issue in the Middle East. Palestinians see East Jerusalem as the future capital.
The demonstrations in the old city center degenerated on Monday into protests from far-right groups chanting slogans such as "Gaza in our hands" and "No victory without al-Nakba", referring to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their homes in connection with the war in the region in 1948.
We celebrate this day when we defeated all our enemies, said student Yosef Azoulai to AFP's correspondent.
Attacked shop owners
The far-right group Tirzu gathered for demonstrations that developed into mob-like attacks on Palestinian shop owners, schoolchildren and passersby. The police presence was large and several people were taken in for the aggressive attacks.
Jerusalem Day also got a political dimension when far-right politician Itamar Ben-Gvir, who is interior minister in Netanyahu's government, chose to visit the Temple Mount in Jerusalem in an act seen as a pure provocation against Muslims. The visit, surrounded by a large security deployment, was accompanied by supporters waving Israeli flags, reports Jerusalem Post.
On site at the holy mountain, Ben-Gvir said he "prays for victory in the Israel-Hamas war, that all hostages held in Gaza will return to Israel, and success for the future head of the Shin Bet intelligence agency David Zini".
"Israeli sovereignty"
Jordan's Foreign Ministry reacted sharply to the visit to the al-Aqsa mosque and charged Ben-Gvir with "storming the al-Aqsa mosque with a large group of extremist settlers".
But Netanyahu also chose to mark the Israeli future stance.
will make sure that Jerusalem remains united and under Israeli sovereignty, he said.
The Israeli prime minister's statement, in Jerusalem's eastern district, was a direct provocation against the residents of the occupied parts of Jerusalem.
