Palestine warns of Israeli policy to 'forcibly impose new realities' in Jerusalem

Palestine warned on Thursday of an "official, systematic, and deliberate" Israeli policy, led by the government, aimed at "forcibly imposing new realities in occupied Jerusalem and undermining the existing historical status quo." In a statement, the Palestinian Foreign Ministry condemned "in the strongest terms" this week's storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.

Ben-Gvir's incursion

The ministry called Ben-Gvir's move "part of an official, systematic, and deliberate Israeli policy led by the extremist occupation government, aimed at forcibly imposing new realities in occupied East Jerusalem and undermining the existing historical and legal status quo at Al-Aqsa Mosque." Video footage showed Ben-Gvir forcing his way into the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, raising the Israeli flag and dancing with right-wing settlers.

Status quo violation

The ministry added that the incursion comes "within the framework of an ongoing colonial plan aimed at the unacceptable spatial and temporal division of the city, in clear violation of international law." The "status quo" refers to the arrangement that prevailed during the Ottoman era and continued after the Israeli occupation of Jerusalem in 1967.

Sovereignty declaration

The ministry reiterated that "the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque/Haram al-Sharif, with its entire area of 144 dunams (144,000 square meters), is a place of worship exclusively for Muslims." It added that Palestine "has full legal sovereignty over occupied East Jerusalem" and "the Israeli occupation has no sovereignty over the city or its holy sites."

Settler incursions

Right-wing Israeli groups called for large-scale incursions into Al-Aqsa to mark the anniversary of the occupation of East Jerusalem. An official told Anadolu that 620 Israeli settlers stormed the mosque on Thursday under police protection. About 50,000 settlers plan to hold a flag march through East Jerusalem, often accompanied by attacks on Palestinian property and chants of "Death to Arabs."