Israeli occupation forces assaulted worshippers on Monday evening as they performed the evening and Tarawih prayers near Bab as‑Sahera in the Old City of occupied Jerusalem, in the West Bank.
Troops fired stun grenades at the worshipers and detained several young men in the area, escalating tensions during the third week of Ramadan.
In a related incident, Israeli authorities threatened to shut down “An‑Nasr Restaurant” in the Khan al‑Zeit market and barred its owner from preparing or distributing hot meals to residents and passersby near Bab al‑Amoud. The meals donated by local benefactors are traditionally offered as a charitable act during the holy month.
The occupation authorities continue to close the Al‑Aqsa Mosque compound and prevent Palestinians from reaching it for the seventeenth consecutive day, citing what they describe as “security conditions” linked to the ongoing U.S.–Israeli war on Iran.
The closure marks an unprecedented escalation: for the first time since 1967, Palestinians were prevented from attending the final Friday of Ramadan. Worshippers were also barred from marking Laylat al‑Qadr, one of the holiest nights in the Islamic calendar.
The Jerusalem Governorate warned of a dangerous rise in incitement led by extremist groups known as the so‑called “Temple Organizations,” which have intensified their calls targeting Al‑Aqsa amid the continued closure.
The governorate stressed that these actions cannot be dismissed as “temporary security measures,” as claimed by Israeli authorities, but rather form part of a broader political and ideological agenda aimed at altering the religious, historical, and legal status quo at the Al‑Aqsa Mosque.
The developments come as Palestinians in Jerusalem face mounting restrictions, abductions, and assaults during Ramadan, deepening concerns over the deliberate reshaping of the city’s cultural and religious landscape under prolonged occupation.
