Over 4,200 Israelis Enter Al-Aqsa Mosque

Thousands of Israeli settlers and far-right activists, accompanied by a senior government minister, entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem on Thursday, July 23, 2026, in one of the largest such incursions this year. The event, which coincided with the Jewish fast day of Tisha B'Av, drew widespread condemnation from Palestinian and Jordanian officials as a dangerous violation of a long-standing religious status quo.

Palestinian authorities reported that more than 4,200 Israelis had entered the holy site by the afternoon, with expectations the number could rise to 5,000 by sundown. Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, a far-right politician, visited the compound under heavy police protection. In a video statement, Ben-Gvir praised what he called "tremendous progress," stating that Jews praying at the site "feel like they're the owners of the place." Israeli media reported police allowed more than 1,000 Israelis to pray at the site, an act normally prohibited under arrangements in place since 1967.

The compound, known to Muslims as Al-Aqsa and to Jews as the Temple Mount, is one of the most sensitive religious sites in the region. Administered...