Around 1,300 Israeli settlers entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem on Thursday during the Jewish fast of Tisha B’Av, according to the Jerusalem Governorate. Israeli police imposed restrictions on Palestinian worshippers while allowing groups of settlers to enter the site.
The Jerusalem Governorate said Israeli police increased the number of settlers entering the compound in each group to around 150. It also reported a heavy security deployment at the mosque’s gates and throughout Jerusalem’s Old City during the visits.
According to the governorate, Israeli forces prevented many Palestinian worshippers from reaching the mosque for dawn prayers. Officials said only a limited number of Palestinians managed to enter before security personnel dispersed or removed several worshippers in the area.
The governorate alleged that some settlers performed religious rituals inside the compound, including wearing tefillin, prostrating in the eastern section and chanting. It also claimed that groups supporting the construction of a Jewish temple at the site had mobilised participants with the aim of bringing thousands of visitors during the day.
The Palestinian authority in Jerusalem condemned the visit by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, describing it as a serious escalation and a violation of the site’s long-standing historical and legal status quo. It said the visit reflected continued tensions surrounding one of the region’s most sensitive religious locations.
Israeli lawmaker Amit Halevi of the Likud party also visited the compound on Thursday. The Al-Aqsa Mosque compound is regarded as Islam’s third-holiest site, while Jews know the location as the Temple Mount and consider it the site of two ancient Jewish temples.
The Al-Aqsa Mosque compound has frequently been the focus of political and religious tensions in Jerusalem. Israel captured East Jerusalem during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War and later annexed it in a move that has not been recognised by most of the international community. The latest developments are expected to draw further international attention.
