On the 58th anniversary of the occupation of Jerusalem…raids, prayers, flags and assaults
Every year, the anniversary of the occupation of the eastern part of Jerusalem comes, but it is not just a date to be remembered. Rather, it is a day relived in its painful details, recalling the scenes of the ongoing occupation and the reality the city and its people have endured for 58 years.
From the early morning hours, attacks begin in Jerusalem, with the first destination being Al-Aqsa Mosque, the first of the two Qiblas, with large-scale raids. These raids then spread to the Old City and its neighborhoods, continuing in the afternoon with a massive settler march, and concluding with a group prayer at the Al-Buraq Wall.
It is as if the city and its Al-Aqsa Mosque have been opened to settlers and attacks, but closed to its people and residents.
2,092 settlers ... Numerous violations
The Islamic Endowments Department stated that 2,092 settlers stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque today (1,427 in the morning and 665 in the afternoon).
The violations are not limited to the number of intruders into Al-Aqsa Mosque. Many other violations were recorded, the most prominent of which, as monitored by the Wadi Hilweh Information Center team in Jerusalem, included:
• The participation of ministers and Knesset members in the incursions, most notably Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir, Minister of the Negev and Galilee Yitzhak Weserlov, as well as MKs Zvi Sukkot, Ariel Kolner, Amit Halevi, and Yitzhak Kroizer. Senior rabbis led groups of settlers, and some Knesset members led prayers inside Al-Aqsa Mosque and raised Israeli flags.
• The raising of Israeli flags inside Al-Aqsa Mosque; settlers walked around waving them, and some wore them on their backs. Pictures were taken inside Al-Aqsa Mosque in several locations while they were waving them.
• The wearing of clothing bearing images of Israeli flags and images of the so-called "alleged Temple."
• The raising of the blue "Temple Flag" bearing an image of the Temple.
• The bringing of Jewish prayer tools (tefillin and tallit—prayer shawls) into Al-Aqsa Mosque, which are tools intended for prayer in synagogues.
• Performing collective prayers and prostrating in several locations inside the mosque.
• Forming groups of people dancing, singing, and clapping inside Al-Aqsa Mosque, chanting prayers and hymns during the raid.
• Israeli police allowed six groups of settlers to be inside Al-Aqsa Mosque at one time, with each group consisting of no less than 100 settlers.
• Performing prayers at the outer gates of the mosque, and raising Israeli flags there.
• Muslims were prevented from entering Al-Aqsa Mosque from the early morning hours, as occupation officers stationed at the gates demanded that citizens return after 3:30 PM (i.e., after the raids had ended).
• Extremist "Temple" groups claimed that the last group of settlers left Al-Aqsa Mosque at 3:40 PM, instead of 3:15 PM, extending the period of raids during Jewish holidays and occasions.
After the raids: Continuous violations
After the raids ended, settler attacks began inside the Old City and its alleyways, particularly around Damascus Gate. There were reports of assaults, including beatings, pepper gas, shoving, and verbal abuse against Jerusalemites, as well as attacks on merchants inside their shops. Cases of assaults on pedestrians were also recorded on the city streets.
As they do every year, the occupation police forced merchants to close their shops in and around the Old City.
Surrounding streets were closed, checkpoints and iron barriers were erected, and forces were heavily deployed in the areas of Herods Gate, Sultan Suleiman Street, Al-Musrara, and Nablus Street.
Flag Dance March
The occupation authorities designated Damascus Gate Square for the annual settler march known as the "Flag Dance," which began in western Jerusalem and headed east, reaching the Al-Buraq Wall, passing through Damascus Gate and the alleys and markets of the Old City.
Settlers transformed Damascus Gate Square into a stage for singing, dancing, and drumming. Songs were broadcast over loudspeakers, and groups of people formed singing circles. They also waved Israeli and "Temple Mount" flags, chanting racist slogans calling for the expulsion of Arabs and Muslims from the city.
Settlers also chanted profanities and inflammatory slogans calling for the killing and expulsion of Arabs, emphasizing that "Jerusalem is the capital of Israel." Ministers and Knesset members participated in the march.
Settlers organized provocative marches in the neighborhoods of Al-Sowaneh, Sheikh Jarrah, Beit Hanina, and Shu’fat.
“Israeli Cabinet Session” in Silwan
The Israeli cabinet held a special session to commemorate the occupation of Jerusalem in the Wadi Hilweh neighborhood of Silwan.
The Wadi Hilweh Information Center reported that the session was held inside the settlement outpost called "City of David," located directly at the southern wall of Al-Aqsa Mosque.
The session was chaired by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The center noted that occupation forces were deployed in the neighborhood, with sniper teams positioned on the rooftops of the high-rise buildings surrounding the outpost. The entrances to the neighborhood were closed, and forces were deployed in the alleys, restricting residents' movement and preventing them from stopping in front of their homes or parking their vehicles.
The center added that the forces threatened residents and demanded they not leave their homes or even look out of windows overlooking the session site.
The forces had raided the Wadi Hilweh neighborhood in recent days and demanded that residents not park their vehicles on Monday.
UNRWA headquarters stormed in Sheikh Jarrah
At noon, settlers stormed the headquarters of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, waving Israeli flags.
Eyewitnesses said that the settlers infiltrated the fence, removed the lock on the main door, and hung Israeli flags at the entrance.
The incursion was led by MK Yulia Malinovsky of the right-wing Yisrael Beiteinu party, who wrote on Twitter from inside the headquarters: "Today I am proud to have been able to liberate the former UNRWA headquarters in central Jerusalem. Israeli government, we are here. You are invited to come and see how sovereignty is being applied. UNRWA is no longer here, and there is no reason for it to return."
In October 2024, the Knesset passed a law banning UNRWA activities inside Israel, along with another law prohibiting any contact with it. On January 30, in an official letter to UN Secretary-General António Guterres, the Israeli government demanded the evacuation of all UNRWA facilities and the cessation of its operations in the city.
UNRWA has since evacuated its headquarters in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.
The end of the day
The occupation's activities concluded this eventful day with a mass prayer attended by hundreds of thousands of settlers at the Al-Buraq Wall, a scene intended to consolidate control over the city and its holy sites, commemorating the anniversary of its occupation.
