Israeli settlers, led by extremist Ben-Gvir, storm Hebron's Ibrahimi Mosque to mark Jewish holiday

Thousands of illegal Israeli settlers, led by the far-right Israeli National Security Minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, stormed the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, in the southern occupied West Bank, to mark a Jewish holiday, Anadolu Agency reports.

Aref Jaber, a member of a local committee working to defend Hebron against Israeli violations, told Anadolu that several buses transported the settlers to the Ibrahimi Mosque, where they performed Talmudic rituals for the Jewish holiday known as Chayei Sarah (Life of Sarah).

“The Israeli army completely sealed off the Old City in Hebron (where Ibrahimi Mosque is located) and imposed a curfew on the people,” Jaber added.

Ghassan Al-Rajbi, Director of the Ibrahimi Mosque, told Anadolu that the Israeli army closed the mosque to the Palestinians and kicked the mosque’s employees out until Saturday evening.

He noted that the settlers were escorted by Israeli ministers, including Ben-Gvir.

The Ibrahimi Mosque is located in the old city of Hebron in the southern West Bank, which is under Israeli control. About 400 illegal settlers live there, guarded by around 1,500 Israeli soldiers.

Revered by both Muslims and Jews, Hebron’s Ibrahimi Mosque complex is believed to be the burial site of the prophets Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

After the 1994 massacre of 29 Palestinian worshipers inside the mosque by a Jewish extremist settler, Baruch Goldstein, the Israeli authorities divided the mosque complex between Muslim and Jewish worshippers.

In 2017, the UNESCO-affiliated World Heritage Committee declared the Ibrahimi Mosque a Palestinian World Heritage Site.

READ: PLO calls for international support to protect heritage sites in Hebron