Israeli settlers and officials enter Al-Aqsa and Western Wall area in East Jerusalem during Yom Kippur period

Israeli settlers have again entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem and performed Jewish prayers in the courtyard, according to the supplied reporting. The activity came during a weekend of heightened movement around holy sites in the city, with senior Israeli figures also visiting the Western Wall area. The developments were described as drawing fierce condemnation.

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The reporting says National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and others entered the Al-Aqsa compound on Thursday for Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar. It also says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited tunnels beneath occupied East Jerusalem on Saturday and later appeared at the Western Wall plaza with ministers and thousands of settlers under security protection. On Sunday morning, Netanyahu released videos and photographs showing him taking part in Selichot prayers at the Western Wall, known to Muslims as the al-Buraq Wall.

The Palestinian Jerusalem governorate said about 570 settlers had stormed the courtyards of the Al-Aqsa Mosque by 10am local time on Sunday. The same reporting says the prime minister and his wife were filmed moving through excavation tunnels beneath the Western Wall while prayers were taking place. The tunnels lie under the Old City and the Al-Aqsa compound, which makes such visits especially sensitive for Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem.

The incident matters because Al-Aqsa is one of the most sensitive religious sites in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and access or prayer arrangements there often trigger political and religious tensions. The weekend activity also came ahead of next month's Israeli election, adding a domestic political dimension to the dispute. The combination of settler incursions, ministerial visits and public prayer displays has intensified concern over the status quo at the compound.

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The supplied material places the latest events within a broader pattern of repeated incursions into the site by settlers and Israeli officials. It also highlights the role of the Western Wall tunnels, which run beneath the Old City and are closely linked to competing religious and national claims in Jerusalem. The reporting frames the weekend as part of a series of provocative acts around holy sites in occupied East Jerusalem.

What remains unclear from the supplied rows is whether there were any arrests, injuries or immediate policy changes after the incursions. It is also not clear whether the reported numbers of participants were independently verified beyond the Palestinian governorate's statement. Further developments may depend on official responses from Israeli authorities, Palestinian institutions and any new activity at the compound in the coming days.

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