Occupied Quds - Saba:
Hundreds of Zionist settlers desecrated Al-Aqsa Mosque on Sunday to celebrate the so-called Jewish "Purim" holiday, indicating the seriousness of this stage, which portends a widespread religious war.
According to Palestinian media, more than 555 settlers raided Al-Aqsa Mosque in successive groups through the Mughrabi Gate, whose keys have been controlled by the Zionist enemy authorities since the occupation of Jerusalem in 1967.
Settler raids of Al-Aqsa Mosque occur daily, except on Fridays and Saturdays. During the month of Ramadan, the raids are limited to one period instead of two: the morning period, from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.
Media outlets reported that the Zionist settlers performed their prayers with "dancing, singing, and collective prostration" during the raids on Al-Aqsa in several areas. Dozens of settlers wore the "priestly" clothing of the Temple.
Last Thursday, 191 Zionist settlers stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque on the first day of the Purim holiday.
The number of settlers at Al-Aqsa Mosque swells during Jewish holidays and occasions, and settlers exploit these periods to storm Al-Aqsa in large numbers and pray there.
Since last August, Jewish prayers at Al-Aqsa have been held daily and publicly, following the announcement by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir of his intention to build a synagogue there.
Restrictions on Muslim entry to Al-Aqsa continue during the month of Ramadan. Barriers are placed at all entrances to the mosque, and entry is randomly denied to women, young men, and the elderly. The number of worshippers at Al-Aqsa is limited to residents of Jerusalem and those within the Palestinian territories.
Residents of the West Bank are also prohibited from entering, except on Fridays, "with specific numbers and ages" of those permitted to enter. Meanwhile, residents of Gaza have been banned from entering Al-Aqsa for years.
The Israeli occupation authorities have also issued dozens of bans from Al-Aqsa in recent weeks, including for sheikhs, activists, journalists, and released prisoners.
It becomes clearer day after day that the Prime Minister of the Zionist entity, Benjamin Netanyahu, is giving the extremist ministers, Smotrich and Ben-Gvir, a free hand and granting them consolation prizes at the expense of the Palestinian citizens in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, their land, property and lives, in order to maintain his ruling coalition and prolong his stay in power. He is providing them with full governmental cover to confiscate more Palestinian land, Judaize it through settlements, deepen the crimes of creeping annexation of the occupied West Bank, and practice the most heinous forms of abuse against Palestinian citizens, subjecting them to a system of racial segregation (apartheid) that does not recognize their right to life or any of their civil rights as a people groaning under occupation.
The fascist Minister Ben-Gvir, who always carries a matchstick, never misses an opportunity to ignite more fires in the arena of conflict. He recently began this with his widespread incitement to prevent worshippers from reaching Al-Aqsa Mosque during the holy month of Ramadan.
Currently, Ben-Gvir is attempting to ignite what he failed to achieve by demanding continued settler incursions into Al-Aqsa during the last ten days of Ramadan. This is all done with the protection, support, and backing of the Zionist enemy forces, parts of which are subject to the orders and instructions of Smotrich and Ben-Gvir, and whose violations are committed in clear complementarity with the armed settler militias and the legitimacy of the usurping government of the occupying entity.
Islamic bodies and endowments typically condemn the settlers' desecration of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, stressing that the settlers' desecration of the holy Al-Aqsa Mosque is a dangerous and unprecedented act of aggression, referring to settler practices within the mosque's courtyards, including "raising the Israeli flag, blowing the shofar, and performing Jewish religious prayers."
Zionist settlers repeatedly storm the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound every day except Saturday and Friday, on several occasions to mark Jewish holidays.
Palestinians say that the Zionist entity no longer adheres to its commitments and is working to divide Al-Aqsa Mosque, temporally and spatially, by allowing settlers to storm it and interfere in its affairs.
Zionist enemy forces began allowing these incursions in 2003, despite repeated condemnations by the Islamic Endowments Department in Quds.
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