By Humaira Ahad
The Israeli regime has threatened to impose tougher restrictions on Muslim worshippers from visiting the Al-Aqsa Mosque in the occupied Old City of al-Quds during the upcoming holy month of Ramadan.
It comes amid Israel’s genocidal war against Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip, where the number of people killed since October 7 now tops 30,000, most of them children.
Last month, Channel 13 reported that Israeli Premier Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered restrictions on Palestinians from accessing Al-Aqsa Mosque during the month of Ramadan, acting on the proposal of far-right minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
With access to the holy site already limited for prayers, especially on Fridays, since October 7 when the regime launched its fresh aggression on Gaza, the move to impose tougher restrictions in Ramadan was deemed extremely provocative and dangerous by many observers and rights groups.
During Ramadan, the mosque becomes a focal point for Palestinian religious life and identity as thousands of worshippers gather in the vast courtyard of the third holiest site in Islam.
Al Aqsa, which represents a symbol of Palestine’s faith, identity, history and resistance, has been turned into a flashpoint by the Israeli regime in recent years by targeting Palestinian worshippers.
Ben-Gvir, known for his hawkish rhetoric and hate-filled politics, had called for a blanket ban on Palestinian Muslims from visiting Al Aqsa mosque during the upcoming holy month.
Ben-Gvir proposed a plan in the war cabinet to prohibit Muslim worshippers from the occupied territories and the West Bank from entering Al Aqsa mosque during the month of Ramadan.
A staunch supporter and follower of the Zionist mass murderer Baruch Goldstein, who massacred 29 Palestinians at the Ibrahimi mosque in 1994, Ben-Gvir recommended that only Palestinians from occupied territories above the age of 70 should be allowed into the mosque during Ramadan.
The decision, however, faced opposition from the Shin Bet, the regime’s internal police outfit, warning the ban could exacerbate tensions.
Last week, Israel’s Channel 12 reported the Israeli war cabinet will decide the Al-Aqsa Mosque restrictions during Ramadan, not ruling out Ben-Gvir’s proposal, even after sidelining him.
Hamas calls for Al Aqsa march
The Palestinian resistance group Hamas denounced the provocative move and warned that the decision could explode the already fragile situation in the occupied territories.
In a statement, Hamas said the planned restrictions would be a “violation of the freedom of worship” at the third holiest site in Islam. The Gaza-based resistance group added that the plan shows the Israeli regime’s intention to escalate its attacks on the mosque during Ramadan.
“This is a call to our people in Jerusalem and the West Bank to march to Al-Aqsa on the first day of Ramadan,” Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh said in a televised address on Wednesday.
“The siege of Al-Aqsa and the siege of Gaza are one and the same,” he hastened to add.
Hamas described the restrictions as “a continuation of Zionist criminality and religious warfare led by the extremist settlers group in the terrorist occupation government against our Palestinian people.”
“An outburst of anger is waiting to go off in the face of the occupying regime in response to any restrictions on worship at the al-Aqsa Mosque during Ramadan,” Izzat al-Rishq, a member of the political bureau of Hamas was quoted as saying on February 18.
The resistance group called on Palestinians in the occupied territories to “reject this criminal decision, resist the occupation’s arrogance and insolence, and mobilize to stand firm and steadfast in Al-Aqsa.”
The Islamic Jihad resistance movement also slammed the decision to impose curbs on the entry of Palestinian worshipers into the al-Aqsa Mosque compound during Ramadan, saying it is part of the occupying entity’s plan of systematic displacement and Judaization of the sacred Muslim site.
The movement said Netanyahu’s far-right cabinet seeks to impose the plan “within the framework of the ongoing war of genocide and ethnic cleansing” against the Palestinian people in Gaza.
Ramadan raids at Al Aqsa in recent years
The regime has no claim over occupied East Jerusalem and therefore cannot assert control over the Al-Aqsa mosque. The long-standing status quo allows only Muslim worshippers at the site.
However, in breach of the international law that forbids the occupier any right over the occupied land, the regime has been using violence against Palestinian worshippers in the Al Aqsa mosque compound
The violent attacks particularly spike during the month of Ramadan when Palestinians flock to the holy mosque to offer prayers and break their fast.
Israel has in the past set rules to limit the number of worshippers at the site, citing “security reasons” while undertaking random and violent raids at the mosque compound.
On March 1, the occupation forces physically assaulted worshippers going for Friday prayers to the Al Aqsa mosque. A woman and a young man were beaten out of consciousness while two other Palestinians were detained, according to reports.
Israeli forces have been ruthlessly harassing worshippers coming to the mosque, beating them with batons and using tear gas and sound bombs to force them out of the holy site, especially on Fridays.
In recent years, the brutality unleashed by the Zionist entity against Muslim worshippers during Ramadan has turned the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound into a flashpoint.
In the Ramadan of 2023, almost 400 Palestinians were arrested and at least 170 wounded after the forces of the regime carried out violent raids inside the mosque compound. They even prevented the emergency paramedics from entering Al Aqsa to help the injured.
The deadly incursion was followed by the killing of 36 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
In the Ramadan of 2022, Israeli forces injured around 160 worshippers at the holy mosque and arrested at least 400 others.
The year before that, Israeli forces stormed the Al Aqsa compound with tear gas shells, steel bullets and stun grenades. Hundreds of Palestinians were injured in the Israeli police action.
The violence led to an 11-day aggression on the Gaza Strip, which killed 256 Palestinians, including 66 children, and wounded more than 1,900 others.
In a clear act of provocation, Zionist settlers have in recent years been entering the Al Aqsa Mosque compound under the protection of regime forces.
In the Ramadan of 2023, Ben-Gvir asked Israelis to visit the holy mosque to mark the Passover holiday, which coincided with the Islamic month of fasting.
