Israel closes Ibrahimi Mosque to Muslim worshipers in West Bank

Israeli soldiers on Wednesday closed the Ibrahimi Mosque in the southern West Bank city of Hebron to Muslim worshippers until Thursday evening, citing "security measures" for occupiers celebrating Jewish holidays.

In a statement, the Palestinian Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs condemned the closure, calling on international and human rights institutions to intervene urgently to halt "systematic violations against the mosque" and ensure Muslims' freedom to access it.

Motasem Abu Sneineh, director of the Ibrahimi Mosque, said the closure was part of "the ongoing escalation and efforts to seize what remains of the mosque."

He stressed that the Ibrahimi Mosque is "an exclusively Islamic site in all its halls and courtyards," describing the measures as a "blatant assault on freedom of worship guaranteed by international conventions."

Alongside the closure, Israeli army forces tightened military measures around the mosque and closed checkpoints and electronic gates leading to it, obstructing access for students and teaching staff at the Ibrahimi Basic School for Boys and Al-Fayhaa Basic School for Girls.

The measures completely halted classes at the Ibrahimi school and disrupted education at Al-Fayhaa, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa.

The Ibrahimi Mosque is located in the Old City of Hebron, which is under full Israeli control, where around 400 occupiers live under the protection of approximately 1,500 Israeli soldiers.

In 1994, Israel divided the mosque, allocating 63% to Jews and 37% to Muslims, following a massacre carried out by an Israeli occupier that killed 29 Palestinian worshippers.