Groups of Israeli settlers, on Monday morning, have entered the yards of Al-Aqsa mosque in small and consecutive groups, from the Magharba gate, under heavy protection by Israeli forces.
According to the PNN, a total of 33 settlers entered the yards of the mosque without permission, despite such actions continuing to trigger provocations amongst the Muslim Palestinian population.
Al Aqsa Mosque is the third holiest site in Islam and also venerated as Judaism’s most holy place, alleged to be the original site of Solomon’s Temple. Disputes surrounding visitation to the site have historically flared tensions in the occupied Palestinian territory.
In 2003, the Israeli government unilaterally decided — despite the objections of the Islamic Endowments Department — to allow non-Muslim visitors into the complex.
Since then, under increasingly right-wing Israeli governments, extremist Jewish settlers have been allowed into the site in ever greater numbers — usually protected by Israeli security forces — while Palestinian access to the site has become increasingly restricted.
Christians outside of the Levant remain divided on the issue, as biblical end times prophecy states: “I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.” ~Revelation 21:22
However, settler attacks on Christian holy sites have been progressive in recent years, and are on the increase.
Archive IMEMC post — 2015: A Dangerous Escalation at Al-Aqsa Mosque
