Right-wing Israelis stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and a United Nations facility for Palestinian refugees in East Jerusalem, marking Israel’s conquest of the eastern part of the city. Thousands of heavily armed police and border police were deployed to prevent settlers from attacking Palestinians in the Muslim Quarter. During the march, some Israelis chanted “Death to Arabs” and “May your village burn” as they marched through Jerusalem’s Old City.
The storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound by over 2,000 Israelis, including Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, was met with condemnation from the Jerusalem Waqf, the Islamic authority overseeing the compound.
Ben-Gvir released a video from the site, stating, “I prayed for victory in the war, for the return of all our hostages, and for the success of the newly-appointed head of the Shin Bet – Major General David Zini”.
This incident is part of a recurring pattern, with Jewish settlers storming the mosque multiple times in the past, including 21 times in March 2024, as Muslims celebrated Ramadan.
The UNRWA compound in East Jerusalem was also stormed by a small group of Israeli protesters, including an Israeli member of parliament, Yulia Malinovsky. According to UNRWA West Bank coordinator Roland Friedrich, about a dozen protesters entered the compound, climbing its main gate in view of Israeli police.
Israel’s actions against UNRWA have impacted the agency’s life-saving work in areas including the Gaza Strip, where more than 95 percent of agricultural land is now unusable due to Israeli attacks.
The march has raised tensions in Jerusalem, with Al Jazeera’s Nida Ibrahim noting that it asserts Israeli dominance over the city. “Videos show Israeli citizens inside the Old City of Jerusalem attacking Palestinian shops and throwing objects at them,” she said. The Jerusalem Waqf has called for a halt to all “provocative activities” in the area.