Dozens of Israeli settlers storm Al-Aqsa Mosque

According to the Palestinian news agency Wafa, dozens of settlers entered the mosque compound under Israeli police escort, carrying out provocative tours and performing Talmudic rituals.

Previously, extremist Jewish groups had called for mass incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque to mark the beginning of the Hebrew New Year.

The Islamic Waqf in Jerusalem has repeatedly demanded an end to these raids, but the Israeli authorities have ignored such appeals.

Coinciding with the 29th anniversary of the popular uprising known as the “Tunnel Intifada”, which began on September 25, 1996 in protest against the excavation and opening of the Western Tunnel beneath Al-Aqsa Mosque, new statistics on settler incursions have been released.

The Tunnel Intifada, which saw participation across various parts of Palestine, included widespread actions from north to south—such as the siege of over 40 Israeli soldiers in the Youssef Dweikat outpost east of Nablus and its liberation after decades of occupation. The protests lasted six months, leaving dozens martyred and around 1,600 injured. Israeli occupation forces responded with live fire, helicopters, tanks, and the involvement of settlers in suppressing the people.

Twenty-nine years later, threats against Al-Aqsa Mosque persist. Groups known as “Temple Movements,” with full support from the Israeli cabinet, continue efforts to impose de facto partition of the mosque and enforce Jewish rituals in its courtyards.

Recent data shows that between October 3, 2024 and September 22, 2025, a total of 58,310 settlers entered Al-Aqsa Mosque—representing a 14% increase compared to last year’s 51,223 incursions.

The so-called “Temple Movements” strive each year to break records in settler raids on Al-Aqsa during Jewish holidays, with full financial and political backing from the Israeli cabinet—intensifying the risk of undermining Muslim sovereignty over their holy sites.