Far-right Israeli incursion heightens tensions at Al-Aqsa ahead of election

What the report says

Al Jazeera reported that hundreds of Israelis entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem on Thursday, July 23, 2026, during Tisha B’Av, with the Palestinian Authority saying the number could rise to about 5,000 by sunset. The visit included far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who was accompanied by heavy police protection, according to the report.

The compound, known to Jews as the Temple Mount, is among the most sensitive religious and political sites in Jerusalem. Under longstanding arrangements, Jewish prayer at the site is legally prohibited, although Al Jazeera reported that activists said police allowed participants to pray, sing and prostrate inside the compound. The report also said Likud lawmaker Amit Halevi and Rabbi Shimshon Elboim raised Israeli flags, while others sang Israel’s anthem.

Al Jazeera said Israeli authorities imposed tight security measures in Jerusalem’s Old City, including restrictions on Palestinian access to the compound except for elderly worshippers and tighter movement controls from the occupied West Bank. The outlet also cited local media reporting arrests of Jewish suspects over alleged damage to a Muslim cemetery and other alleged attacks on Palestinian passers-by.

The incident comes ahead of Israeli parliamentary elections scheduled for October. Analysts cited by Al Jazeera described the incursion as part of rising far-right political activity, including recent calls by Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich for renewed Israeli settlement in Gaza. Palestinian officials and religious authorities have warned that repeated incursions risk changing the status quo at Al-Aqsa, while regional governments have previously cautioned that such visits could inflame tensions.