Palestine Warns of Serious Repercussions Over Settlers’ Control of Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron

West Bank, MINA – Palestine on Wednesday issued a strong warning about “grave repercussions” following Israel’s decision to transfer authority over the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, West Bank, to a settler council.

According to Israeli media reports, as cited by Anadolu Agency, Tel Aviv revoked the Hebron Municipality’s authority over the historic mosque and reassigned it to the religious council of the Kiryat Arba settlement. The move reportedly aims to enable “structural changes” at the site, which Israeli sources described as “great news for the settlement.”

“The decision represents a flagrant violation of international law and relevant UN resolutions,” said the Palestinian Foreign Ministry in a statement. The ministry urged immediate intervention from UNESCO and the international community to stop Israel’s plan.

This is the first major change to the mosque’s status since the 1994 Shamgar Commission recommendations, which divided access between Jewish and Muslim worshippers after the massacre by extremist settler Baruch Goldstein, who killed 29 Palestinian worshippers during dawn prayers. Under the current arrangement, 63% of the mosque is allocated to Jewish worshippers, while 37% is reserved for Muslims.

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The Ibrahimi Mosque is situated in Hebron’s Old City, an area fully controlled by Israel, where around 400 settlers live under the protection of approximately 1,500 Israeli soldiers.

Since Israel’s war on Gaza began, nearly 1,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 7,000 injured in the West Bank due to actions by Israeli forces and settlers, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

In July last year, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. []

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)

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