Thousands Muslims Perform Friday Prayer at Al-Aqsa

Gaza, MINA – Thousands of Palestinian worshipers gathered for Friday prayers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, defying heightened Israeli restrictions and provocative security measures imposed by occupation forces, Palestine Information Center reported.

Israeli police were stationed throughout the mosque compound during the sermon in what many described as an intentionally provocative presence. Officers also set up checkpoints at key gates, including Damascus Gate (Bab al-Amud) and Lions’ Gate (Bab al-Asbat), where they stopped young men, checked IDs, and denied entry to at least one individual.

In another incident, Israeli forces stopped and searched an elderly Palestinian man in Jerusalem’s Old City shortly before the prayers, adding to the ongoing tensions surrounding access to the holy site.

Activists in Jerusalem have renewed calls for mass mobilization, increased presence (murabatah), and resistance against what they describe as ongoing Israeli schemes and settler intrusions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.

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This week, mosque guards prevented a sacrilegious attempt by Israeli settlers to perform a sacrificial ritual within the compound. The settlers had smuggled a sheep in a fabric bag through Bab al-Ghawanmeh, aiming to conduct a Talmudic sacrifice inside the sacred area. Guards intercepted and stopped the ritual in time, protecting the sanctity of the mosque.

Following the incident, calls intensified urging Muslims to maintain a strong presence at Al-Aqsa to thwart further threats, particularly as restrictions on Palestinian worshipers continue while settlers are reportedly given increased access.

In response to the attempted sacrifice, the Hamas Movement released a statement condemning the act as a dangerous escalation. The group warned that such provocations represented a direct violation of Islamic sanctities and called for widespread mobilization to protect Al-Aqsa.

Hamas emphasized the importance of murabatah and called on Muslims to increase their presence at the mosque, praising the guards for preventing the desecration. []

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Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)