RAMALLAH, Over 2,250 extremist settlers, led by Israeli occupation government ministers, stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque on Tuesday.
The Islamic Waqf Department said in a press statement that settlers entered the mosque through Al-Maghariba (Moroccan Gate), raised the Israeli flag, and performed a religious ritual.
Led by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Minister for the Development of the Periphery, the Negev and the Galilee Yitzhak Wasserlauf, dozens of settlers, following calls by extremists to mark the anniversary of the “Destruction of the Temple,” spread out along Al-Silsila (Chain Gate) after entering the mosque, as confirmed by local sources.
Palestinian Presidential spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh in a press statement condemned these actions, warning of dangerous provocations by terrorist settlers and holding the Israeli government responsible for inflaming tensions among the Palestinian people, as well as Arabs and Muslims worldwide.
Abu Rudeineh called on the US administration to immediately
pressure the Israeli government to halt these provocations, maintain the legal status quo in Jerusalem, and cease attacks on the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, warning that failure to do so could lead to uncontrollable regional escalation.
He underscored that peace and security in the region are unattainable without a just resolution to the Palestinian issue and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, encompassing both Islamic and Christian holy sites.
Source: Kuwait News Agency