Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque for 1st Tarawih prayer of Ramadan

Thousands of Palestinians performed the first Tarawih prayer of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan on Tuesday evening at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque compound as Israeli police maintained a visible presence across the site.

Worshippers filled the mosque's covered prayer halls and open courtyards, while Sheikh Yusuf Abu Sneineh, the preacher of Al-Aqsa Mosque, led the evening prayers, according to eyewitnesses.

Footage shared online showed Israeli police stationed inside the compound and moving among worshippers during the prayers.

Earlier in the day, Sheikh Mohammed Hussein, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem and the Palestinian territories, announced that Wednesday would mark the first day of the Muslim holy month.

"The crescent of Ramadan has been sighted in accordance with Islamic legal procedures," he said, confirming that Feb. 18, 2026 corresponds to the first day of Ramadan 1447 in the Islamic calendar.

The prayers came against the backdrop of heightened tensions in occupied East Jerusalem, particularly in and around the Old City and the Al-Aqsa compound, where Israeli authorities have stepped up security measures, including arrests and temporary bans against religious figures and activists.

The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor said Israeli restrictions across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, had intensified ahead of Ramadan, affecting access to places of worship.

According to figures cited by the Jerusalem Governorate, more than 250 orders barring Palestinians from entering Al-Aqsa have been issued since the beginning of 2026.

On Monday evening, Israeli police detained Sheikh Mohammad Al-Abbasi, the imam of Al-Aqsa Mosque, before releasing him and issuing a one-week ban from the mosque, renewable, the governorate said.

Israel has intensified operations in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since launching its military campaign in Gaza on Oct. 8, 2023. Palestinians view the escalation -- including killings, arrests, displacement and settlement expansion -- as a step toward formal annexation of the territory.

In a landmark opinion in July 2024, the International Court of Justice declared Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.