Israel intensifies crackdown at Al-Aqsa Mosque ahead of Ramadan
Israeli police said they will deploy heavily around the al-Aqsa Mosque throughout the holy month of Ramadan, as the Tel Aviv regime announces new restrictions at the sacred compound.
Arad Braverman, a senior Israeli police officer in occupied al-Quds, said on Tuesday that forces would be stationed “day and night” across the compound and in the surrounding areas.
He added that thousands of Israeli police officers would also be on duty for Friday prayers, which consistently draw the largest crowds of Muslim worshippers.
During the month of fasting and prayer, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians attend prayers at the al-Aqsa Mosque in east al-Quds, which Israel captured in 1967 and later annexed.
Braverman also said police had recommended issuing 10,000 permits for Palestinians from the occupied West Bank, who are required to obtain special permission to enter al-Quds.
Israeli authorities have additionally decided to bar dozens of young Palestinians from entering the al-Aqsa Mosque during the upcoming month of Ramadan and to restrict access for worshippers arriving from the West Bank and other occupied territories.
The punitive steps are expected to significantly reduce the number of worshippers compared to previous years.
In a statement on Tuesday, the Palestinian al-Quds Governorate said it had been notified that entry permits would once again be limited to men over 55 and women over 50, replicating last year’s restrictions.
The statement added that Israeli authorities had prevented the Islamic Waqf, the Jordanian-run body responsible for administering the site, from carrying out routine preparations, including installing shade structures and setting up temporary medical clinics.
A Waqf source confirmed the restrictions and said that 33 of its employees had been barred from entering the compound in the week leading up to Ramadan.
Palestinian activists have called for urgent action to protect Islamic holy sites, warning that daily Israeli restrictions are aimed at reshaping the city’s Islamic identity.
Palestinians have also sharply condemned ongoing incursions by extremist Israeli ministers and members of the Knesset into the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East al-Quds.
The Palestinian Resistance group Hamas recently urged the international community, the United Nations, the Arab League, and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to take “deterrent” measures against the “Judaization, displacement, and annexation projects led by the fascist occupation regime.”
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Israel intensifies crackdown at Al-Aqsa Mosque ahead of Ramadan
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