Israel Bars Most West Bank Palestinians, Allows Tens of Thousands to Pray at Al-Aqsa Under Heavy Occupation Restrictions

Israel sharply limited access for West Bank Palestinians to Jerusalem's Al‑Aqsa Mosque on the first Friday of Ramadan.

“Israel says it will allow only 10,000 Palestinians from the occupied West Bank to enter, a fraction of the hundreds of thousands of worshippers of previous years”

Al Jazeera

It imposed a permit regime and capped entry from the occupied West Bank at 10,000 people.

Al Jazeera

Large numbers of police and troops were deployed.

Thousands were turned back at checkpoints such as Qalandiya, and only a small fraction had crossed by morning.

Israeli forces and police enforced tight security inside and around the compound.

Senior imams and Al‑Aqsa personnel were removed and at least one imam detained.

Anadolu Ajansı

Far‑right minister Itamar Ben‑Gvir and senior police entered the site.

Medics and volunteer crews were barred or briefly detained.

Authorities introduced restrictive documentation and screening measures.

The Ramadan access restrictions sit against a backdrop of escalating West Bank repression documented by rights groups and the UN.

“Date: OCCUPIED PALESTINE —Israel severely restricted Palestinians’ access to Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem for the first Friday prayers of Ramadan, deploying large numbers of forces and setting up military checkpoints, while allowing far-right minister Itamar Ben-Gvir to raid the holy site and provoke the Muslim worshipers”

Clarion India

UN OCHA and multiple outlets report more than 1,100 Palestinians killed in the West Bank since 2023 and over 10,000 forcibly displaced.

Palestinians and critics say Israel’s approval of a plan to designate large West Bank areas as 'state property' amounts to de facto annexation.

Some outlets explicitly characterise Israel’s campaign in Gaza with the strongest terms; The New Arab calls it 'Gaza genocide'.

Other outlets report the very high Palestinian death toll and describe international accusations of ethnic cleansing and large-scale civilian suffering, citing Gaza’s Health Ministry figures and UN statements in mainstream pieces.

Daily Times

The immediate humanitarian and political fallout is stark: aid pledges announced by the U.S. administration are described as a small fraction of what's needed to rebuild Gaza.

“Tens of thousands of Muslims gathered at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem for the first Friday prayers of Ramadan, conducted under heavy security”

Devdiscourse

Rights groups warn the Al-Aqsa access measures and West Bank policy changes weaken Palestinian ties to East Jerusalem and compound civilian suffering.

Devdiscourse

Observers say the restrictions on worship, continued settler attacks, detentions of medics and the de facto annexation plan deepen displacement and isolation of Palestinians.