As the holy month of Ramadan arrives, Palestinians fear that the Israeli authorities and far-right settlers might provoke unrest in Jerusalem.
With ceasefire talks failing to reach any conclusion, the Israeli forces might continue to attack Palestinians during Ramadan, as has happened before.
As Israel intensifies the genocidal war in Gaza, Palestinians in Jerusalem find it difficult to engage in festivities ahead of the holy month.
Meanwhile, reports suggest that Israel might also take advantage of the war on Gaza to exert control over the Al-Aqsa compound and keep Palestinians out.
Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, situated at the heart of occupied East Jerusalem, is one of Islam’s holiest sites.
In Ramadan and the days leading up to the Muslim holy month, the compound usually spills over with people.
But this year, the Muslim Holy site, also known as Al-Haram Al-Sharif, has been empty of worshippers as never before in decades.
Since the beginning of the genocidal onslaught on October 7, Israel has imposed near blanket restrictions on the entry of Palestinians to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, even during Friday prayers.
Israeli police barricaded the compound and prevented hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from entering the Old City of Quds and the Masjid.
Notably, Israeli officials were planning to double the restrictions at al-Aqsa in Ramadan.
Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s national security minister, has demanded to limit the number of Muslim worshipers at the site during Ramadan.
Prime Minister Netanyahu, on the other hand, has proposed to impose a week by week security plan with rigid restrictions.
Over the years, Israeli authorities have unleashed violence at the holy site in the name of security, to exert more control over it.
In 2021, Hamas had to fight an 11-day war following the Israeli brutality against worshippers inside and around Al-Aqsa, and the settler attempts to take over Palestinian homes in Sheikh Jarrah.
In 2017, an employee of the Israeli Antiquity Authority was caught trying to remove a stone from a pillar in an underground section of the Al-Qibli mosque.
The incident triggered a verbal confrontation between the Palestinian guards employed by the Awqaf Council and the Israeli police, who ended up arresting six Awqaf guards.
In the summer of the same year, the Israeli police attempted to install surveillance equipment, metal detectors and other barriers to prevent free movement at the entrances of the compound.
This led to a two-week standoff between the police and Palestinians in the city who embarked on a campaign of civil disobedience, gathering in thousands.
Occupation forces meddling with the Al-Aqsa and Jerusalem isn’t new either, but it has become more brazen today.
Following the 1967 war, Israel seized control of one of the entrances to the compound known as the Moroccan gate, permitting only Jewish visitors to use it, marking the first major incident of infraction.
Since then, the interference has only escalated.
Today, the Awqaf Council has to fight the Israeli police and authorities even to carry out the most minor necessary maintenance activities of the site.
The ongoing war in Gaza has only fueled the longstanding custom of troubling worshippers at the holy site.
Meanwhile, Israeli has forces intensified attacks across the Gaza Strip, killing at least 13 women and children in the Nuseirat refugee camp and destroying a residential tower in Rafah on Saturday.
At least 30,960 Palestinians have been killed and 72,524 injured in Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7
