Hundreds of settlers storm Al-Aqsa Mosque

Around 700 Israeli settlers stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex on Tuesday under heavy protection from the Israeli police, according to Wafa news agency.

Local sources reported that the Israeli police imposed strict restrictions on the entry of worshippers and detained some Palestinians who tried entering the mosque complex as the settlers performed Talmudic rituals on the third day of the Jewish Passover holiday.

The Israeli police transformed Jerusalem and its Old City into a military barracks, deploying thousands of officers and special forces units on the streets and roads to secure the settlers' movement, the report said.

As part of an agreement between Jordan – the custodian of Islamic and Christian sites in Jerusalem – and Israel, only Muslims are allowed to pray in al-Aqsa while Jews can perform prayers by the Western Wall.

A Muslim woman reads from the Quran outside the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque compound on 17 April 2023 (Hazem Bader/AFP) — A Muslim woman reads from the Quran outside the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque complex on 17 April 2023. (Hazem Bader/AFP)