The Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, has strongly condemned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s storming of the al-Buraq Wall Plaza, along with renewed settler incursions into the courtyards of the al-Aqsa Mosque, describing the actions as a dangerous and provocative escalation.

In an official statement issued on Tuesday, Hamas said the move forms part of a broader Israeli campaign aimed at Judaizing the al-Aqsa Mosque and the occupied city of al-Quds, which the movement reaffirmed as the eternal capital of the State of Palestine. Hamas warned that such actions threaten the historical, religious, and legal status quo of Islam’s third-holiest site.

The movement stressed that Israel’s ongoing measures and settlement-driven Judaization projects in al-Quds and across the occupied West Bank will not succeed in erasing the city’s Arab and Islamic identity. Hamas called on Arab and Islamic nations, governments, peoples, and institutions to take urgent and concrete action to defend al-Aqsa Mosque, protect Islam’s first Qibla, and support the steadfastness of the Palestinian people in confronting occupation policies.

Hamas also urged the international community to shoulder its political and legal responsibilities by putting an end to Israeli crimes and blatant violations of international law, including repeated assaults on holy sites and the systematic denial of the Palestinian people’s national rights.

The statement comes as Israeli violations intensify during the Jewish festival of Hanukkah, a period that has increasingly been used by extremist settlers to carry out ritual performances inside the al-Aqsa compound, particularly near the al-Buraq Wall, under heavy Israeli police protection. Palestinians view these acts as deliberate provocations intended to impose a new religious and political reality on the mosque.

Israeli officials and extremist settler groups have repeatedly stormed the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied al-Quds in recent years, with incursions often carried out under the direct protection of Israeli occupation forces. These raids, which include religious rituals and provocative tours, have been widely condemned as violations of the long-established status quo governing the holy site.

In October 2025, far-right Israeli Police Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir led extremist settlers into the mosque’s courtyards during the Jewish Sukkot holiday, performing provocative rituals amid a heavy police presence. The move sparked strong criticism from Jordan, the official custodian of Islamic holy sites in Jerusalem, as well as from other Arab states.

On August 21, 2025, extremist settler groups again stormed the mosque compound, conducting conspicuous tours that Palestinians said were part of escalating efforts to normalize settler presence and undermine Muslim worship at al-Aqsa. Earlier, on August 3, 2025, Ben-Gvir himself stormed the compound, openly defying the status quo and calling for the reoccupation of the Gaza Strip, triggering widespread regional condemnation.

Such incidents have become increasingly frequent. On June 5, 2024, hundreds of settlers stormed the mosque compound ahead of the annual settler Flag March, while Israeli forces were deployed throughout Jerusalem’s Old City to suppress Palestinian protests. On May 26, 2025, more than 2,000 settlers, including extremist ministers and Knesset members, entered the courtyards of al-Aqsa, dancing and chanting under police protection in what Palestinians and human rights groups described as a hostile and inflammatory act.

Palestinians say these repeated incursions, often timed to coincide with Jewish religious festivals and accompanied by Talmudic rituals, reflect a systematic policy aimed at asserting Israeli control over al-Aqsa Mosque. They warn that continued violations risk further inflaming tensions in occupied al-Quds and across the region, as Palestinians remain steadfast in defending their holy sites against occupation and settler aggression. (ILKHA)