The Jerusalem Governorate warned on Thursday of the dangerous and systematic escalation by Israeli paramilitaries, specifically targeting Al-Aqsa Mosque, which has taken on a more aggressive and organized character by extremist “Temple” groups, with official support from the Israeli occupation government and its security forces.
Meanwhile, the Islamic Waqf and Holy Endowments Foundation issued a report that the Israeli occupation forces stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque 25 times and prevented the call to prayer at the Ibrahimi Mosque 89 times during June.
The Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs said in its monthly report that the Israeli occupation escalated its violations against Islamic and Christian holy sites during June, especially Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Ibrahimi Mosque.
The report, a copy of which was received by WAFA on Thursday, stated that the occupation and its settlers carried out more than 25 raids on the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, during which Talmudic rituals were performed. The mosque was also closed 11 times and worshippers were prevented from entering under the pretext of the “security situation.” The report also specified the number of worshippers inside the mosque and imposed dangerous Judaization measures on the Old City and the Dome of the Rock.
The report indicated that thousands of worshippers performed Eid al-Adha prayers at Al-Aqsa Mosque amidst severe restrictions, while occupation soldiers and settlers stormed the Dome of the Rock courtyards during the prayers, and settlers performed public rituals of singing, dancing, and clapping.
Regarding the Ibrahimi Mosque, the occupation authorities banned the call to prayer there 89 times during June, closed it to worshippers and visitors for 12 consecutive days, and refused to hand it over on Eid al-Adha and the anniversary of the Prophet’s migration.
The report also noted that the occupation forces had installed alarm systems in the corridors of the sanctuary, and that a number of its soldiers had climbed onto its roof, in addition to illuminating its walls with Israeli flags, closing its eastern gate, and forcibly lighting the surrounding area.
The Ministry of Endowments affirmed that these measures represent a blatant assault on its authority, an infringement on the sanctity of the Ibrahimi Mosque, a provocation of Muslim sentiments, and an attempt to impose a temporal and spatial division on it.
In the same context, the report documented the occupation forces’ closure of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem to Christian worshipers for 11 consecutive days, and their storming of the Great Salahi Mosque in Nablus and searching its entire facilities, including rooms and the roof of the mosque.
The Ministry of Endowments called on the international community and human rights and religious institutions to take urgent action to halt these ongoing violations that undermine freedom of worship and threaten the historical and legal status quo at holy sites.
The Jerusalem governorate added in a statement that the program published by one of the so-called “Temple” groups includes systematic raids on Al-Aqsa Mosque over the course of an entire month, with the participation of 12 rabbis and heads of Jewish religious institutes, under religious and racist pretexts. This constitutes a dangerous escalation in the process of Judaizing Al-Aqsa Mosque and changing its Islamic character.
The governorate noted that the gathering of rabbis constitutes a violation of the Chief Rabbinate’s edict, clearly demonstrating how extremist religious groups are bypassing even traditional Jewish religious authorities in favor of a colonialist agenda attempting to impose a new reality on Al-Aqsa.
The governorate stressed the seriousness of the escalation and the accompanying public Jewish religious rituals within the mosque’s courtyards, such as the wedding of settlers amid dancing and singing under the protection of the occupation police. This is a provocative and unprecedented scene, revealing the premeditated intention to transform Al-Aqsa Mosque into an arena for Talmudic rituals, a blatant violation of the sanctity of the place and its Islamic religious and cultural status.
The governorate warned that continued incursions and the imposition of Jewish religious rituals at Al-Aqsa Mosque could lead to an explosion in the city of Jerusalem and the entire region, holding the occupation government, headed by the so-called Minister of National Security, fully responsible for the consequences of these provocative policies that ignore all international laws and agreements related to holy sites.
The statement emphasized that these violations would not have occurred without the explicit official support of extremist National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who gave settlers the green light to practice their rituals within the entire Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, not just in the eastern corner. This represents a dangerous change to the existing rules of the occupation and a reversal of the historical and legal status quo.
The governorate reiterated that the holy Al-Aqsa Mosque is the exclusive right of Muslims alone, and that no political, religious, or military entity has the right to violate or alter this right. The governorate also stated that the ongoing violations represent a premeditated preparation for a broader aggression during the so-called “Anniversary of the Destruction of the Temple” next August, calling on the world to shoulder its responsibilities to prevent this.
The governorate called on the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the Arab League, the United Nations, and especially UNESCO, to take urgent action to halt this escalating aggression against the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque.
The Jerusalem Governorate saluted the steadfastness of the city’s steadfast residents, both men and women, who are confronting Judaization attempts and incursions with their bodies and their consciousness, stressing that the Islamic right to Al-Aqsa is immutable and will not be lost with the passage of time or by the will of the colonists.
