Over 6,000 illegal settlers storm Al-Aqsa complex since Sunday to mark Jewish Passover holiday, official figures show
A hardline Knesset member joined hundreds of illegal Israeli settlers in storming the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem on Thursday, marking the fifth day of the Jewish holiday of Passover.
The Islamic Endowments Department in Jerusalem said that at least 1,650 illegal settlers entered the flashpoint site under the protection of Israeli police since Thursday morning.
A statement by the Jerusalem governor's office said on Thursday that illegal settlers visited the mosque courtyard and the ancient Bab Al-Rahma cemetery, where they performed Talmudic rituals.
The Bab al-Rahma is an ancient Muslim cemetery that has been an endowment property for more than 1,400 years. It contains numerous graves of notable companions of Islam's Prophet Muhammad.
According to the statement, Knesset member Zvi Sukkot, from the far-right Religious Zionism Party of National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, also forced his way into the flashpoint site and performed what is called “epic prostration.”
Ben-Gvir praised Sukkot's act at the Al-Aqsa Mosque and for changing the site's status quo.
"I'm happy to see that also MK Zvi Sukkot, like many thousands, is prostrating himself and praying at the Temple Mount (Al-Aqsa Mosque)," Ben-Gvir said.
According to Palestinian figures, more than 6,000 illegal settlers stormed the Al-Aqsa complex since Sunday to mark the week-long Passover, which lasts until April 20.
Since 2003, Israel has allowed illegal settlers into the flashpoint compound almost on a daily basis, with the exception of Fridays and Saturdays.
Al-Aqsa Mosque is the world's third-holiest site for Muslims. Jews call the area the "Temple Mount," claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.
Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. It annexed the entire city in 1980 in a move never recognized by the international community.
