JERUSALEM, August 3, 2025 (WAFA) – The Palestine Liberation Organization's (PLO) Jerusalem Affairs Department condemned the blatant violation that took place in the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque on Sunday morning, following the provocative incursion by the extremist Israeli Minister of "National Security" Itamar Ben Gvir, accompanied by Knesset members and leaders of so-called “Temple” groups.

The Department, in a statement, described the incursion as a dangerous escalation that constitutes an official declaration of undermining the historical and legal status quo of the mosque.

The department emphasized that the participation of ministers and Knesset members under heavy security protection reinforces the militarization of Al-Haram Al-Sharif and transforms it into a platform for political power displays, in open defiance of the Hashemite custodianship and blatant violation of international legitimacy resolutions.

It noted that the incursion involved over 3,023 colonists who publicly performed biblical rituals and raised the Israeli flag, while Palestinian worshipers were prevented from accessing the site, as part of a blatant policy of apartheid implemented by the occupation police.

The department explained that the incursion came as part of what is referred to as the so-called "anniversary of the Temple's destruction," which has been increasingly used annually as a pretext to intensify targeting of Al-Aqsa Mosque, with support from the highest levels of the occupation government and the involvement of security and judicial institutions.

The Department stated that the incursion’s dangerous nature was evident in colonists taking photos on the steps of the Dome of the Rock, delivering biblical interpretations, and chanting slogans calling for the construction of a “temple”, marking a serious escalation in the religious aggression on Al-Aqsa.

The Department emphasized that the participation of official figures in the incursion shifts the aggression from extremist groups to decision-making circles, constituting a blatant challenge to international will and necessitating urgent diplomatic action.

It called for coordinated international efforts to protect the status quo at Al-Aqsa Mosque, in accordance with UN and UNESCO resolutions, and to translate condemnations into concrete measures to halt the rapid slide toward explosion in Jerusalem and the rest of the occupied Palestinian Territory.

T.R.