The third Friday of Ramadan without worshippers at Al-Aqsa Mosque, a week after its closure
On the third Friday of Ramadan, the Al-Aqsa Mosque was devoid of fasting worshippers, having been shut for a week due to the US-Israeli war on Iran, citing a "state of emergency and Home Front Command directives that ban gatherings."
Jerusalem today looked like a military outpost, with iron barriers set up at the Old City gates and the Al-Aqsa Mosque gates fully shut. A deep silence enveloped the city on what should have been the third Friday of Ramadan, a day when fasting worshippers would normally gather at the mosque.
Despite this, several worshippers tried to reach the Al-Aqsa Mosque, hoping it had reopened following the easing of some emergency restrictions. However, occupation forces stopped them from entering the Old City, forcing them to pray in the streets of Jerusalem and at the closest accessible point.
Ratiba al-Natsheh, a member of the National and Popular Action Committee in Jerusalem, reported that this marks "the fifth Friday since the occupation of Jerusalem that the Al-Aqsa Mosque has been entirely closed." She noted, "This Friday is the most critical because it follows a series of measures by the Israeli government aimed at gaining full control over the holy sites, especially Al-Aqsa Mosque. This closure is particularly significant given the ongoing efforts to alter the status quo at Al-Aqsa. Since Ramadan began, the occupation has been attempting to establish a new reality by increasing settler incursions, banning Itikaf (seclusion for worship), and today, shutting down Al-Aqsa Mosque completely."
Fakhri al-Junaidi, a reciter at Al-Aqsa Mosque, stated that occupation forces prevented him from entering the Old City via the Lions' Gate to attend Friday prayers and recite the Quran, despite holding an official Islamic Endowment Department card.
Al-Junaidi mentioned that he couldn't even pray at the nearest spot to the mosque because the external loudspeakers at Al-Aqsa Mosque weren't functioning.
It is noteworthy that the Al-Aqsa Mosque has been completely closed by order of the occupation authorities, preventing Friday prayers five times since the occupation of Jerusalem in 1967, according to experts. The first closure occurred on Friday, June 9, 1967, two days after Jerusalem was occupied. The second closure took place on Friday, July 14, 2017, following a shooting incident at Al-Aqsa, when the occupation authorities attempted to implement electronic gates at its entrances. The third closure happened on June 13, 2015, coinciding with the 12-day Israeli-Iranian war, and lasted until June 20, 2015, for the same reason. Another closure occurred on March 6, 2016, due to the US-Israeli conflict against Iran.
In 2020, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, the four Friday prayers of Ramadan were canceled, following a decision by the Islamic Waqf Council in Jerusalem to "suspend prayers" at Al-Aqsa Mosque as a COVID-19 preventative measure.
