Israel’s Ben-Gvir, nearly 1,000 occupiers storm Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa, Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron to mark Sukkot

Extremist Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir stormed the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron in the southern West Bank on Tuesday along with hundreds of occupiers, as around 1,000 Israelis forced their way into Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem. Israel’s Channel 14 broadcast footage showing Ben-Gvir during the intrusion into the Ibrahimi Mosque to mark the Jewish Sukkot holiday. “When I arrive at the Ibrahimi Mosque, I draw energy that makes me want to sing and rejoice,” Ben-Gvir, who has lived as an occupier in Hebron for years, told the channel during the visit. Hundreds of occupiers could be seen behind him during the interview. Israeli authorities announced Monday that the Ibrahimi Mosque would be closed to Muslim worshippers during Sukkot. “The closure includes a ban on prayers and the Muslim call to prayer at the mosque, ahead of occupiers taking control of it and violating its sanctity during Jewish holidays,” the Palestinian Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs said in a statement. “The measures constitute a blatant assault on the sanctity of the Ibrahimi Mosque and infringe on freedom of worship and Muslims’ right to practice their religious rituals,” the ministry said, stressing that the mosque is “an exclusively Islamic endowment.” It warned of grave consequences from continued Israeli measures and attempts to impose temporal and spatial division at the mosque. The Ibrahimi Mosque is located in Hebron’s Old City, an area under full Israeli occupation, where around 400 occupiers live under the protection of some 1,500 Israeli soldiers. Israel divided the mosque in 1994, allocating 63% to Jews and 37% to Muslims, after a Jewish occupier killed 29 Palestinian worshippers in a massacre at the site. Under unilateral Israeli arrangements, the mosque is closed entirely to Muslims for 10 days each year during Jewish religious occasions and similarly closed to Jews for 10 days during Islamic religious occasions. Since Israel began its genocidal war on the Gaza Strip in October 2023, Israel has not fully opened the mosque to Muslims during their religious occasions. Aqsa incursions In occupied East Jerusalem, 966 Israeli occupiers stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque on Tuesday morning, according to the Islamic Waqf Department in Jerusalem. Videos and images distributed by extremist Israeli right-wing groups showed occupiers performing Talmudic rituals and prayers, as well as singing and dancing, particularly in the eastern part of the mosque compound. Occupiers were expected to return to the mosque after noon prayers, according to an Anadolu correspondent. Extremist right-wing groups have called for mass incursions into Al-Aqsa during Sukkot. More than 1,500 occupiers stormed the mosque Sunday and more than 1,700 on Monday, including Ben-Gvir, according to the Islamic Waqf Department. Al-Aqsa Mosque is the world's third-holiest site for Muslims. Jews call the area Temple Mount, claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times. Israeli police began allowing occupiers to enter the mosque in 2003, with their numbers increasing since then. The Islamic Waqf Department has repeatedly demanded an end to the incursions, without a response from Israeli authorities. The Jewish holiday period began with Rosh Hashanah on Sept. 12-13, followed by Yom Kippur on Sept. 21-22. Sukkot runs from Sept. 26 to Oct. 2, followed by Simchat Torah on Oct. 3. Palestinians regard East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, as the capital of a future Palestinian state, based on international resolutions that do not recognize Israel’s occupation of the city in 1967 or its annexation in 1980. ​​​​​​​Israel was established in 1948 on Palestinian land seized by armed Zionist groups that carried out massacres and displaced at least 750,000 Palestinians. Israel later occupied the remaining Palestinian territories and continues to reject withdrawal and the establishment of a Palestinian state as stipulated in UN resolutions.