CAIRO, May 16, 2026 (WAFA) – Arab foreign ministers strongly condemned the storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque compound by hard-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir under heavy protection from Israeli forces.
In a statement issued on Saturday, the Council of the Arab League at the ministerial level rejected the incursion, noting that it coincided with the 78th anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba and the forced displacement of Palestinians from their homeland.
The ministers also condemned large-scale incursions by colonist groups and repressive measures in occupied Jerusalem, including the closure of the Old City, restrictions on worshippers’ access to Al-Aqsa Mosque, and the so-called flag march marking the occupation of Jerusalem.
The statement denounced the provocative practices accompanying the incursion, including the raising of Israeli flags inside the mosque compound and the performance of religious rituals there, describing them as part of a systematic official policy aimed at imposing new realities by force in occupied East Jerusalem.
The ministers said the measures seek to undermine the historical and legal rights of the Palestinian people and alter the historical and legal status quo of Islamic and Christian holy sites, including Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
They stressed that these violations are part of an ongoing settlement project aimed at Judaizing the city, erasing its identity, and changing its legal, cultural, and demographic character, including attempts to impose spatial and temporal division at the holy compound.
The statement reaffirmed that the State of Palestine holds full legal sovereignty over occupied East Jerusalem and that Israel has no sovereignty over the city or its holy sites. It added that all unilateral measures taken by Israeli authorities are null and void under international law, United Nations resolutions, and the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice.
Arab foreign ministers also reiterated that the entire 144-dunum area of Al-Aqsa Mosque is an exclusive place of worship for Muslims and that the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf, affiliated with Jordan’s Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs, is the sole legal authority responsible for administering the site and regulating entry to it.
The ministers warned of the dangerous consequences of continued incursions, closures, and restrictions, saying they could fuel further escalation and threaten regional and international peace and security.
They held Israel, as the occupying power, fully responsible for the violations and called on it to prevent colonists from storming holy sites and attacking places of worship, while demanding the removal of all restrictions on access to religious sites in Jerusalem.
The statement also called on the international community and relevant international organizations to fulfill their legal and moral responsibilities by taking urgent action to protect the Palestinian people and holy sites in occupied Jerusalem and by adopting deterrent measures against colonists and their extremist leaders.
M.N
