Israeli occupiers stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque in the occupied West Bank 26 times in September, while the army banned the Muslim call to prayer 150 times at the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, the Palestinian Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs said Tuesday.
In a report detailing Israeli violations of Islamic holy sites last month, the ministry said pressure on Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem had intensified alongside calls by extremist Jewish groups for increasing occupier incursions into the flashpoint site.
Al-Aqsa Mosque is the world's third-holiest site for Muslims. Jews call the area Temple Mount, claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.
The ministry also documented an increase in Talmudic rituals inside the Al-Aqsa compound, including public prayers and what it described as "epic prostration."
Under the historic and legal status quo, Al-Aqsa Mosque is administered by the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf, affiliated with Jordan's Ministry of Awqaf, as a place of worship exclusively for Muslims.
Since 2003, Israeli police have allowed occupiers to enter the compound through the Mughrabi Gate under police protection, despite repeated Palestinian and Jordanian calls to halt the incursions.
"At the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, Israeli authorities prevented the call to prayer 150 times during September," the ministry said, adding that restrictions on some prayer times had continued for 100 consecutive days.
"The mosque was also completely closed for six days under the pretext of Jewish holidays, while its eastern gate remained shut and its windows covered with barriers, measures in place since the beginning of 2025," the ministry said.
The Ibrahimi Mosque is located in Hebron's Old City, an area under full Israeli occupation, where around 400 occupiers live under the protection of some 1,500 Israeli soldiers.
Israel divided the mosque in 1994, allocating 63% to Jews and 37% to Muslims, after a Jewish occupier killed 29 Palestinian worshippers in a massacre at the site.
The ministry also reported increasing occupier attacks on mosques in the occupied West Bank.
It said Israeli occupiers set fire to the Imad al-Din Zengi Mosque in Nablus and sprayed racist slogans on its walls.
"Israeli forces also demolished the Al-Duwaysat prayer hall in the Al-Jiftlik area of Jericho province," the ministry added.
It described the incidents as a "dangerous escalation" and called on the international community and human rights and humanitarian organizations to act to protect holy sites and preserve their historical and legal status quo.
