Hundreds of Israeli settlers broke into the flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in occupied East Jerusalem on Sunday, a Palestinian news agency said.
The Jordan-based Islamic Waqf Department, which manages Jerusalem’s sacred sites, claimed in a statement that the settlers entered the area via the Al-Mugharbah Gate, which is guarded by Israeli police.
Al-Aqsa Mosque is the third holiest Muslim shrine in the world. Jews refer to the location as the “Temple Mount,” saying it was once the site of two Jewish temples.
Israeli settlers attacked the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in 2021, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Waqf and Religious Affairs.
During the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Israel captured East Jerusalem, including Al-Aqsa. It annexed the whole city in 1980, a move that the international community never acknowledged.
