80 worshippers at the Ibrahimi Mosque and Al-Aqsa without worshippers for the first time in 59 years.

Worshippers faced unusual restrictions during Eid al-Fitr in the occupied Palestinian territories, with thousands prevented from reaching the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Ibrahimi Mosque.

“An atmosphere of sadness and anticipation prevailed in the occupied Palestinian territories on the morning of Eid al-Fitr after the Israeli occupation authorities imposed unprecedented tight restrictions that prevented thousands of worshippers from reaching the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Ibrahimi Mosque”

Al-Jazeera Net

In Jerusalem, authorities produced a historic new restriction: Eid al-Fitr prayers inside Al-Aqsa were barred, with prayer limited to a small group of guards and Endowments Department staff.

Al-Jazeera Net

Eyewitnesses described dense police presence in the Old City, metal barriers, and tear gas directed at worshippers near the Bab al-Sahrah gate.

Despite the ban, Eid takbeers sounded from the minarets of Al-Aqsa and dozens prayed in the streets near Bab al-Asbat and Bab al-Amud before police forced them away.

Officials described the measures, including closing the Al-Aqsa Mosque for the entire month of Ramadan, as justified under the pretext of preventing gatherings amid the war that Israel and the United States have waged against Iran since February 28.

Harassment in Hebron.

In the city of Hebron in the southern West Bank, Eid prayer at the Ibrahimi Mosque was limited to about 80 worshippers amid dense Israeli military reinforcements.

Al-Jazeera Net

Mu'taz Abu Sinina, the director of the Ibrahimi Mosque, said that Israeli authorities tightened procedures at the mosque entrances, closed most of its gates, and did not allow entry except through the gate of the Old City, subjecting worshippers to thorough searching.

He added that the authorities allowed a very limited number to enter, not exceeding 80 worshippers.

He said the occupation insisted on preventing large numbers of worshippers from entering, and yet they prayed with those who could reach it, stressing that the mosque is a purely Islamic place, and rejecting any attempts to impose a new religious reality there.

It is noted that Israel divided the Ibrahimi Mosque in 1994 with 63% for Jews and 37% for Muslims, following a massacre committed by a settler that killed 29 worshippers.

“An atmosphere of sadness and anticipation prevailed in the occupied Palestinian territories on the morning of Eid al-Fitr after the Israeli occupation authorities imposed unprecedented tight restrictions that prevented thousands of worshippers from reaching the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Ibrahimi Mosque”

Al-Jazeera Net