Far-right Israel MK Ben-Gvir leads raids into Al-Aqsa, under soldiers’ protection

Right-wing Israeli lawmaker, Itamar Ben-Gvir, along with dozens of Israeli extremists, stormed the courtyards of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque this morning under the protection of Israeli authorities, for the second day in a row.

​​Local witnesses told Wafa news agency that dozens of settlers, led by Ben-Gvir, raided the Islamic holy site, took provocative tours and performed Talmudic rituals, in celebration of the Jewish holiday of Sukkot.

It comes a day after the controversial Canadian author and clinical psychologist, Jordan Peterson, joined more than 1032 settlers, who raided the Al-Aqsa mosque compound as Israeli soldiers prevented Palestinian worshipers from entering.

The Islamic Endowments Department in the occupied city of Jerusalem were quoted by Arabi21 issuing warnings of the dangers arising from the escalation of violations by the Israeli occupation authorities against the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, especially during the period of Jewish holidays.

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Today’s massive storming into Al-Aqsa Mosque come on the third day of Sukkot, in response to the calls issued by the Israeli settlement temple associations. This holiday will continue until 17th October.

The extremist Jewish groups worked to mobilise the largest number of settlers to storm Al-Aqsa Mosque in the form of large groups, and the extremist Temple groups demanded that the storming crowds read the Torah loudly inside Al-Aqsa after some texts were circulated to them.

On this holiday, extremist Temple groups try to bring plant offerings into the Al-Aqsa Mosque during the incursions, in addition to continuing to perform Talmudic prayers and rituals in the courtyards of Al-Aqsa.

The Al-Aqsa Mosque is the world’s third-holiest site for Muslims. Jews call the area the Temple Mount, claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. It annexed the entire city in 1980, in a move never recognised by the international community.

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