Two Israeli soldiers were killed by three Arab Israeli gunmen near the al-Aqsa mosque, or Temple Mount, on July 14. The gunmen were killed by Israeli forces at the site.
After the attack, Israel installed metal detectors at the entrance to the mosque, to try to prevent weapons from being smuggled in, and limited entry to people over the age of 50. In response, there were protests throughout Jerusalem and the West Bank.
For the past 30 years, the monastery pictured in our June 2017 mystery photo — the Monastery of Saint Thaddeus — has held scheduled services only one day a year, the Feast Day of St. Thaddeus (which, according to the calendar of the Armenian Apostolic Church, usually falls in our late June or in July). Part of Armenia in ancient times, the region in which the monastery is located is now under Iranian jurisdiction.
A man driving a rented truck struck a group of Muslims who had gathered to help a man who had collapsed near a mosque in northern London, England, on June 19, killing one person and seriously injuring nine others. The incident was called a terrorist attack.
A man, identified as a citizen of Wales, was arrested on the scene and charged with murder and attempted murder. Statements he made at the scene indicate that he had targeted the group because of their religion.
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Two Coptic Christian churches, in the cities of Tanta and Alexandria in northern Egypt, were targeted by bombings during the celebration of Palm Sunday on April 9. In the attacks, at least 45 people were killed and dozens more were injured. The Islamist militant group Daesh (ISIL) claimed responsibility for the attack.
The Egyptian government declared a 3-month state of emergency after the attacks, giving authorities more power to make arrests.
