AhlulBayt News Agency: Thousands of Palestinians gathered at the Ibrahimi Mosque in al‑Khalil on the first Friday of Ramadan, performing prayers under heavy Israeli restrictions that severely limited access to the holy site.
Mutaz Abu Sneineh, director of the mosque, told Anadolu Agency that Israeli occupation forces imposed strict measures from early morning, heavily restricting movement and access.
He explained that the IOF allowed entry through only one gate, causing overcrowding and preventing many worshippers from reaching the mosque, while also blocking ambulance crews from entering the area.
Abu Sneineh added that the gate was later closed after only a limited number of worshippers were permitted inside, leaving hundreds waiting outside near the old city market.
These restrictions come amid ongoing Israeli escalation in the West Bank, coinciding with the third day of Ramadan, in what Palestinians describe as a clear disregard for the sanctity of the holy month.
In 1994, following a massacre by a Jewish settler that killed 29 Muslim worshippers, Israeli authorities divided the Ibrahimi Mosque, allocating 63 percent to Jews and 37 percent to Muslims.
The mosque is fully accessible to Muslims only ten days a year, including Fridays in Ramadan, Laylat al‑Qadr, the two Eids, the night of Isra and Mi‘raj, the Prophet’s birthday, and the Islamic New Year.
Since Israel launched its destructive campaign in Gaza on October 7, 2023, which continued for two years, IOF forces have intensified their assaults in the West Bank and Jerusalem through killings, arrests, demolitions, displacement, and settlement expansion.
Israeli attacks in the West Bank, including Jerusalem, since October 2023 have resulted in more than 1,115 Palestinians killed, around 11,500 injured, and nearly 22,000 arrested.
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