Scores of Israeli settlers this morning broke into the northern West Bank village of Ourata, southeast of Nablus, under army cover and held rituals at holy Islamic sites.

Eye-witnesses said the Israeli army cleared the way for the settlers to break into the village and cordoned off holy sites.

The Israelis performed Jewish rituals at Muslim holy shrines sparking tension in the area.

Israeli occupation forces regularly protect settlers who storm Muslim holy sites in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem including the daily incursions at Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Earlier this week three members of Israel’s Knesset forced their way into the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lifted a three-year ban on government officials and Knesset members visiting the site.

Read: Settlers destroy Palestinian vineyards, cut trees in West Bank