Over 380 settlers enter Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque during Hanukkah

Over 380 Israeli settlers entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem on Thursday, escorted by Israeli police, to mark the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. The visits, reported by Palestinian authorities, are part of a yearly escalation during the festival and have become a recurring flashpoint in the contested city.

Organized visits under police escort

An official from Jerusalem's Islamic Endowments Directorate told Anadolu Agency that the settlers entered the complex in groups throughout the morning and afternoon, performing religious rituals. The site, known to Muslims as Al-Aqsa Mosque (the third holiest site in Islam) and to Jews as the Temple Mount (the historic location of ancient Jewish temples), is administered by Jordanian religious authorities under a long-standing status quo arrangement. Israeli police have facilitated such settler visits since a unilateral policy change in 2003, despite repeated objections from Islamic authorities.

A pattern of escalation and historical context

Incursions by settlers have notably increased during the eight-day Hanukkah holiday, which began this year on Sunday. These organized entries are viewed by Palestinians and much of the Muslim world as provocative violations of the sanctity of the mosque and a challenge to Palestinian custodianship. Israel occupied East Jerusalem, including the Old City where Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War and formally annexed the entire city in 1980—a move not recognized by the United Nations or the vast majority of the international community.

Regional reactions and calls for protection

The recurrent tension at Al-Aqsa underscores the deep-seated religious and national conflict at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian issue. Such incidents are closely monitored across the Islamic world and frequently draw condemnation from Arab and Muslim-majority nations. Türkiye, a staunch defender of Palestinian rights and the status of Jerusalem, consistently condemns such actions, viewing them as violations of international law and historical status quo agreements that threaten to ignite broader regional unrest.