2024: The Most Challenging Year for Al-Aqsa Mosque in Decades

25th December 2024

3 minutes read

2024: The Most Challenging Year for Al-Aqsa Mosque in Decades

Israeli extremists’ incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque reached a record high in 2024.

For the first time since the incursions began in 2003, scenes of extremists performing Talmudic rituals and public prayers in the mosque’s courtyards have become almost daily occurrences.

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Israel’s Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir, leader of the “Jewish Power” party, spearheaded this unprecedented shift in the mosque’s status. Since October 2023, prayers in the mosque have been limited to residents of East Jerusalem and Arab citizens of Israel, with all West Bank and Gaza residents barred from access.

The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office has repeatedly stated that “there is no change to the status quo” at Al-Aqsa Mosque, but the reality tells a different story.

In November 2023, during a parliamentary session, Ben Gvir declared: “We are enhancing sovereignty in Jerusalem, including the Temple Mount (Al-Aqsa). The policy of expelling any Jew praying there has changed, and I am very proud of this.”

In August, he told Israeli Army Radio: “If I could do anything I wanted, I would plant the Israeli flag at the site.” When asked if he would build a synagogue there, he replied: “Yes.”

Ben Gvir’s repeated incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque sparked outrage across Arab, Islamic, and international communities, prompting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to require his personal approval for any future incursions.

The far-right Israeli groups leading these incursions boast that 2024 witnessed a significant increase in the number of participants.

Data from the Islamic Waqf Department in Jerusalem shows that the number of incursions hit a record since 2003:

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January: 2,740
February: 2,413
March: 3,262
April: 5,527
May: 3,405
June: 4,705
July: 3,385
August: 7,440
September: 4,064
October: 9,750
November: 3,797

This totals over 50,000 incursions in 2024.

For comparison:

In 2023, there were 48,223 incursions.
In 2022: 48,000.
In 2021: over 34,000.
In 2020: approximately 18,526.
In 2019: around 30,000, a similar figure to 2018.
In 2017: approximately 26,000.

Previously, Israeli police prohibited any Talmudic rituals, even silent ones, and expelled extremists from the site. However, in 2024, loud Talmudic rituals, dramatic prostrations, the raising of the Israeli flag, the blowing of the shofar, and dancing have become frequent scenes, particularly during Jewish holidays.

In August 2024, Jerusalem’s Islamic institutions, including the Waqf Council, the Islamic Supreme Authority, the Palestinian Fatwa Department, and the Waqf Administration, stated: “We reject the provocative actions and outrageous statements of the Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir, regarding Al-Aqsa Mosque/The Noble Sanctuary. His recent call to build a synagogue inside the mosque is unacceptable.”

They further warned against “the escalating desecration and Judaization attempts by the Israeli government, which protects extremist Jews who show no respect for the sanctity of Al-Aqsa Mosque and offend the sentiments of two billion Muslims worldwide.”