Around 300 Israeli settlers stormed into Al-Aqsa Mosque on Sunday, taking advantage of Jewish holidays, amid tight security measures and Palestinian rejection.
The wave of intruders provoked worshipers during the holy month of Ramadan, and almost led to clashes.
Settlers have responded to calls by extremist groups to revive the Jewish celebration of the “giving of the Torah”, and tried to perform prayers in the area, but police forces stopped them, fearing the deterioration of the situation.
At the same time, other groups of settlers in the markets outside Al-Aqsa, including Al-Qatanin market, staged provocative Talmudic rituals, and gathered in large numbers to pray in the courtyard of Al-Buraq Wall, the Western Wall of Al-Aqsa Mosque.
The prayers came at the invitation of the “organizations of the Temple,” which were strongly involved in the incursions.
Settlers were encouraged to storm into Al-Aqsa and shout Israeli chants, two weeks after an Israeli court ruling allowed settlers to chant “the People of Israel will live” inside the mosque as this is a patriotic not religious declaration, according to the Israeli judge.
Settlers’ incursions come in violation of an agreement between Israel and Jordan - the custodians of Islamic holy sites - which defines the number of Jews intending to visit Al-Aqsa Mosque and prevents them from performing any prayers or religious rites.
The agreement is known as the status quo, since the Israeli occupation of the eastern part of Jerusalem in 1967.
However, the incursions continue despite the warning of the Palestinian Authority and Jordan of a significant deterioration in the situation because of the provocation against the Muslims.
This article has been adapted from its original source.
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