Businesses were hoping to cash in on turning of the New Year, but their plans have been left in tatters following a decision taken by Palestinian police.
« The Interior Ministry and police department did not give permits to any restaurants, hotels or halls for end-of-year parties » after several venues requested permission, police spokesman Ayman al-Batinji told AFP.
The spokesman also added that the celebrations were « incompatible with our customs, traditions, values and the teachings of our religion.”
The parties have been banned “in solidarity with the families of the martyrs of the Jerusalem intifada,”Batinji added. A source close to the authorities added that any illegal parties would be closed down by security forces.
Since October 1, 136 Palestinians and 20 Israelis have been killed in a new wave of attacks across the Holy Land, which has been sparked by tensions over the right of Palestinians to visit the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the murders of a Palestinian toddler and his father in an arson attack carried out by ultra-Orthodox Jewish radicals.