OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)
Over the course of three days at the beginning of the alleged “Feast of Tabernacles,” a total of 4,668 Jewish settlers, accompanied by military reinforcements in Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Old City of Jerusalem, broke all records in their aggression against the Al-Aqsa and violation of its sanctity. This effort aims to alter the religious, historical, and legal status of the holy city and impose a new reality based on their criminal biblical dreams, all amidst Arab, Islamic, and international silence regarding this crime.
Establishing the moral foundation for the temple
Ziad Ibhais, a researcher specializing in Jerusalem affairs, warned that extremist Temple groups are working to change the identity of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque by treating it as if it has already become a temple, even though its structures remain Islamic. They attempt to impose biblical rituals within it, claiming they are “establishing the temple morally” as a precursor to its physical establishment.
Ibhais published an infographic that illustrates the pathways for the envisioned establishment of the temple. He emphasized that holding onto the identity of the Mosque and rejecting all forms of aggression is the key to thwarting these efforts. The imposition of these rituals is not a fixed reality on the ground; what they manage to enforce today can be prevented and ended tomorrow if there is the will to do so.
Monitoring violations and assessing their risks
Ibhais documented the ongoing violations by settlers in the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, under the pretext of performing their alleged holiday rituals called the “biblical days of the Tabernacles.” He reported on Tuesday that hundreds of Zionist settlers performed rituals of offering “plant sacrifices” at the Cotton Merchants’ Gate, marking one of the largest prayer gatherings at the gates of Al-Aqsa since its occupation.
He noted that hundreds of extremist settlers gathered in the Cotton Merchants’ market on Tuesday morning, the sixth day of the biblical “Feast of Tabernacles,” performing rituals of offering “plant sacrifices” while directing their prayers towards the Dome of the Rock.
Objectives of praying at the gates of Al-Aqsa
According to Ibhais, these prayers at the gates of Al-Aqsa began in 2017 after Israeli courts ruled on the “right of Jews” to pray at the gates of Al-Aqsa. Through these practices, Temple groups aim to achieve two main objectives. The first is to involve as many settlers as possible in biblical rituals that seek to change the identity of Al-Aqsa. Many extremist settlers still adhere to the biblical prohibitions imposed by the official rabbinical authority regarding Jewish access to Al-Aqsa due to the “impurity of the dead.” In this way, the Temple groups are adapting to this prohibition and expanding the scope of extremists participating in their efforts to change Al-Aqsa’s identity by treating it as if it were a temple without entering it, instead directing prayers and offering sacrifices at its gates.
The second objective, according to the Jerusalem affairs researcher, is to achieve “auditory control” over Al-Aqsa during times of incursions. The loud sounds from the Cotton Merchants’ Gate mimic the same sounds of prayers performed inside, making the voice of biblical rituals the dominant sound in Al-Aqsa during incursion hours.
Largest incursion in the history of the feast of tabernacles
Ibhais reported on the incursions over the past two days, highlighting serious violations and implications that settlers are attempting to solidify to change the identity of Al-Aqsa. He summarized the fourth day of incursions, which was the previous Monday, as having the largest recorded number of incursions in the history of the Hebrew Feast of Tabernacles, with 1,783 intruders.
He pointed out that the intruders brought a shofar into the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque and blew it twice, bringing the total number of times the shofar was blown during this holiday season to 14, according to the admissions of extremist Temple groups. They have publicly documented and shared this as part of their gradual attempts to normalize Palestinian, Arab, and Islamic minds to the repetition of biblical rituals in Al-Aqsa. The importance of blowing the shofar, in their view, is that it signifies the claimed Israeli sovereignty over Al-Aqsa.
Ibhais also noted that Temple groups brought “the fruits of the Tabernacles” as sacrifices into Al-Aqsa, aiming to change the Mosque’s identity by claiming it has become a temple “inhabited by the spirit of the Lord,” according to biblical belief. They called for a collective performance of the “additional prayer” special to the Feast of Tabernacles at 9:30 AM in Al-Aqsa, asserting it as the central location for these prayers rather than the Buraq Square.
Exclusivity in the eastern courtyard
Ibhais pointed out that all of this coincided with complete exclusivity in the eastern courtyard of Al-Aqsa, where all these rituals took place. Temple groups are treating this area as an unofficial synagogue within Al-Aqsa, isolating it for the performance of biblical rituals. He stressed that this insistence on aggression reflects the vision of religious Zionism that changing the identity of Al-Aqsa is pivotal; a psychological defeat in this regard would open the door to everything that follows. This necessitates treating aggression against Al-Aqsa as an act of war and a priority in managing fronts. Additionally, insisting on enforcing these rituals represents an attempt to drain Al-Aqsa Flood Battle of its meaning, as they continue to change its identity despite the ongoing conflict and sacrifices. This can be thwarted by steadfastness and a long-lasting commitment to the pure Islamic identity of Al-Aqsa.
He concluded by emphasizing the importance of remembering that the Feast of Tabernacles lasts for seven days, continuing until Wednesday, October 23, followed by the Torah completion holiday, which previously sparked the wave of incursions in 2023.
Call for urgent actions to stop violations
Many Islamic institutions in Jerusalem called on Tuesday on the Islamic nation, particularly the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, to take urgent and effective actions to stop the Israeli assaults on Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem. This came in a joint statement from the Islamic Waqf Council, the Islamic Supreme Committee, the Palestinian Fatwa House, the Chief Justice’s Office, and the Islamic Waqf and Al-Aqsa Affairs Department.
The Islamic authorities urged “the Islamic nation, represented by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation—due to their doctrinal and political duty—to take urgent and effective measures to halt the horrific and escalating Judaization assaults that threaten the safety and function of the first qibla and the place of the Prophet Mohammad’s night journey and ascension.”
They warned Muslims in general and their leaders in particular “that they may incur the wrath of Allah if silence and inaction continue regarding the protection of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque.”
This week, during the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles, Al-Aqsa Mosque has faced extensive incursions by settlers who performed biblical rituals affecting the current status and its Arab and Islamic identity.
