Dozens of Israeli settlers, backed by heavily armed Israeli occupation police, stormed the sacred courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem on Thursday, intensifying their ongoing assaults on one of Islam’s holiest sites.

Local sources and eyewitnesses reported that the settlers, entering in organized groups, conducted provocative tours within the mosque’s courtyards and performed Talmudic rituals, further desecrating the sanctity of the revered Islamic site.

This latest incursion is part of a relentless campaign of aggression against the Palestinian people and their religious heritage. Since the onset of Israel’s large-scale offensive in October 2023, targeting both the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank, over 68,000 settlers have violated Al-Aqsa Mosque’s sanctity under the protection of Israeli forces. These incursions occur amidst severe restrictions imposed on Palestinian worshippers, who face tightened controls on access to the mosque and the historic gates of Jerusalem’s Old City.

The repeated storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque, a symbol of Palestinian identity and Islamic heritage, represents a grave escalation in Israel’s systematic efforts to Judaize Jerusalem and undermine the rights of Palestinians. Palestinian authorities and religious leaders have condemned these actions as deliberate provocations aimed at inflaming tensions and erasing the Islamic character of the city.

The international community is urged to take immediate action to halt these violations, protect the sanctity of Al-Aqsa Mosque, and uphold the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people to their land and sacred sites. (ILKHA)