Dozens of Israeli settlers, escorted by heavily deployed Israeli occupation police forces, entered the courtyards of the Al-Aqsa Mosque on Sunday amid continued restrictions imposed on Palestinian Muslim worshipers seeking access to the holy site.

According to local Palestinian sources, at least 125 settlers entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in groups through the Maghariba Gate during the morning hours. Additional incursions were expected later in the day as Israeli authorities facilitated settler access to the site.

Witnesses reported that the settlers toured various areas of the mosque compound under police protection while receiving briefings and lectures from rabbis concerning the so-called “Temple Mount.” Several settlers were also seen performing Talmudic rituals and prayers in the courtyards, actions Palestinians regard as provocative and a violation of the historical and legal status quo governing the holy site.

The Al-Aqsa Mosque, Islam’s third-holiest sanctuary, has long been a focal point of tensions in occupied Jerusalem. Palestinian religious authorities have repeatedly warned that recurring settler incursions, conducted under Israeli police protection, constitute attempts to alter the site's historic and Islamic character.

At the same time, Israeli occupation forces reportedly imposed strict measures on Palestinian worshipers seeking to enter the mosque. Local sources said police stationed at the gates of Al-Aqsa subjected worshipers to identity checks, movement restrictions, and security inspections, while preventing many Palestinians from accessing the holy compound.

The restrictions come amid growing concerns among Palestinians over what they describe as escalating efforts by Israeli authorities and settler groups to increase their presence at the site while limiting Muslim access.

Palestinian religious and civil society organizations have repeatedly condemned such incursions, viewing them as part of a broader policy aimed at imposing new realities in occupied Jerusalem and undermining the historical status of Al-Aqsa Mosque as an exclusively Islamic place of worship.

The latest incident follows a series of similar settler entries into the compound in recent months, which have drawn widespread criticism from Palestinian groups and calls for international action to protect Islamic holy sites in occupied Jerusalem.

Observers warn that continued incursions and restrictions at Al-Aqsa risk further inflaming tensions in the city, where the mosque remains a powerful symbol of Palestinian identity, religious heritage, and resistance to occupation. (ILKHA)