Since last Thursday, October 17, 2024, the city of Al-Qudshas been witnessing escalating assaults against Al-Aqsa Mosque, carried out by groups of Zionist settlers, coinciding with the Jewish holiday of “Hebrew Sukkot,” which lasts for a week. These assaults are accompanied by a heavy presence of “Israeli” forces and strict measures against Palestinians, including the closure of streets and the siege of Al-Qudsneighborhoods, and campaigns to keep People of Al-Qudsaway from Al-Aqsa Mosque.

On Tuesday, during the sixth day of the Jewish “Sukkot” holiday, hundreds of settlers stormed the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque under tight protection from the occupying forces. Successive groups of settlers performed Talmudic rituals in the mosque’s courtyards and at its gates, including blowing the trumpet and offering “vegetal sacrifices.”

The Islamic Endowment in Al-Quds announced in a statement on Tuesday that “724 settlers stormed the mosque during the morning and afternoon sessions“. the Islamic Endowment also reported that 1,461 settlers entered the mosque on Monday, and 1,780 on Sunday.

Notably, there has been a continuous increase in the number of settlers storming Al-Aqsa Mosque. While their numbers were less than 5,000 annually a few years ago, they have exceeded 60,000 this year.

The storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque is not merely a violation of a sacred site but part of a series of assaults on Palestinian identity. In every ritual practiced in the courtyards of Al-Aqsa, new chapters of resilience and defiance are written, as the mosque remains a symbol of resistance and dignity despite all attempts of marginalization and containment.