Dozens of illegal Israeli settlers on Wednesday stormed into the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in occupied East Jerusalem to mark the Jewish Passover holiday.
In a statement, the Islamic Endowments Department in Jerusalem said nearly 256 illegal settlers who were protected by the Israeli forces, stormed the mosque.
Passover, which commemorates the Israelites' exodus from Egypt during the time of Prophet Moses, is considered one of the most important holidays on the Jewish religious calendar.
The Israeli forces imposed restrictions on the movement of Palestinians inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex during the settlers' tour in its courtyards, it also said.
Eyewitnesses told Anadolu that the Israeli forces were heavily deployed inside the mosque to secure the settlers who entered the mosque in groups from the Al-Mugharbah Gate area, west of the holy mosque.
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.
Tensions have been running high across the occupied West Bank since Israel launched a deadly military offensive against the Gaza Strip after a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas last October.
Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which in an interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza, where more than 34,100 people have been killed.
