Israeli actions 'paving way for total control' over Al-Aqsa, says Hamas

What Happened

Hamas political bureau member Khaled Meshaal warned that Israeli measures around Al-Aqsa Mosque are 'paving the way for total control and domination over the site.' He cited a reported 40-day closure of the mosque, what he described as the 'imposition of temporal division' to facilitate incursions by 'extremist Jewish groups,' and efforts to create a 'spatial division' by emptying key facilities within the courtyard. Meshaal called for a 'strategy of resistance and jihad,' urged Arab and Muslim-majority countries to back Palestine, and called on Palestinians to maintain a 'steadfast presence' at the mosque. The comments came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu toured tunnels beneath Al-Aqsa Mosque and posted a video saying, 'It is moving to touch the rock of our existence... We are here, and we will always remain here.' On 20 September, hundreds of Israelis raided Al-Aqsa, including National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who was filmed praying inside the complex under heavy police protection; the Palestinian Authority's Jerusalem Governorate said around 800 people raided the site. The Muslim World League's secretary-general, Dr Muhammad Al-Issa, condemned the raids and called on the international community to halt violations of the mosque and its legal status quo. The status quo arrangement recognises the entire 144-dunam (14.4-hectare) complex as an Islamic holy site, with access, prayer arrangements, maintenance and excavations the responsibility of the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf, but since Israel occupied East Jerusalem in 1967 it has steadily sidelined the Waqf and undermined the status quo through measures including allowing near-daily incursions and Jewish prayer at the site.

Key Actors

Why It Matters

The Al-Aqsa compound is one of the most sensitive sites in the Israel-Palestine conflict; changes to its status quo have repeatedly triggered Palestinian unrest and broader regional escalation. Hamas's explicit call for 'resistance and jihad' over the site, combined with high-profile Israeli official visits and settler incursions during the Jewish high holidays, risks turning Jerusalem into a flashpoint that could draw in Arab and Muslim-majority states and intensify West Bank and Jerusalem tensions.

Watch For

Monitor further incursions and prayer at Al-Aqsa during Yom Kippur and subsequent Jewish holidays, including Sukkot; any Palestinian or Hamas-organised 'steadfast presence' actions in Jerusalem; statements or emergency meetings by the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf, Jordan, Egypt, and the Arab League; and whether Israeli authorities formally alter prayer or access arrangements at the site.