Over 11,400 Israeli occupiers storm Al-Aqsa during Jewish holiday season

A total of 11,409 Israeli occupiers stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem during the Jewish holiday season between Sept. 12 and Oct. 1, Palestinian authorities said Friday, Anadolu reports.

In a statement, the Jerusalem Governorate said the figure covered incursions from the start of the holiday season through Thursday.

It said 593 occupiers entered the mosque compound on Sept. 13 after it was closed to incursions the previous day, a Saturday.

Another 1,678 occupiers entered on Sept. 20 and 21, including 992 on the first day and 686 on the second, according to the statement.

The governorate said 9,138 occupiers entered the compound during the first five days of “Sukkot,” from Sept. 27 to Oct. 1.

It said incursions continued Friday, with further entries expected Saturday.

The governorate said the incursions were accompanied by increasingly public and widespread religious rituals involving Israeli ministers, rabbis, officials and political figures.

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Those taking part included far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, Zehut party leader Moshe Feiglin and Rabbi Yehuda Glick, according to the statement.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also participated in religious rituals at the Al-Buraq Wall, the governorate said.

Practices inside the Al-Aqsa compound included public and collective prayers, prostration, chanting, dancing, singing, clapping and blowing a horn, according to the statement.

Participants also carried prayer books and sheets and wore religious clothing and shirts bearing images and slogans associated with what they call the “Temple,” it said.

Under the historic and legal status quo, Al-Aqsa Mosque is administered by the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf, affiliated with Jordan’s Ministry of Awqaf, as a place of worship exclusively for Muslims.

Since 2003, Israeli police have allowed occupiers to enter the compound through the Mughrabi Gate under police protection, despite repeated Palestinian and Jordanian calls to halt the incursions.

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