JERUSALEM, Sunday, July 31, 2022 (WAFA) – Groups of Israeli settlers escorted by police broke today into the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied Jerusalem and performed rituals in some of its courtyards, according to witnesses.

WAFA correspondent said scores of Israeli settlers entered the holy site through the Moroccan Gate in groups and performed rituals and Talmudic prayers there under the protection of Israeli police officers.

Since 2003, the Israeli occupation authorities have allowed settlers into the compound almost on a daily basis, with the exclusion of Friday, the Muslim day of rest and worship.

The Islamic Waqf, the Jordanian authority in charge of the holy sites in Jerusalem, has repeatedly described the settlers' presence in Al-Aqsa Mosque as "provocative", saying that Palestinian worshippers and guards at Al-Aqsa feel uncomfortable with the presence of Israeli police and settlers touring the Islamic holy site.

Israel captured East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa Mosque is located, during the Six-Day War in 1967 in a move never recognized by the international community.

M.N