As Gaza suffers under fire, Jerusalem faces another form of aggression—one less explosive but no less dangerous. Al-Aqsa Mosque, the heart of Palestinian identity and faith, is under constant threat from an Israeli campaign aiming to redefine the sacred landscape of Jerusalem.

In recent days, the occupation has intensified its incursions into Al-Aqsa, especially during the Jewish Passover holiday. What used to be isolated provocations have become systematic attempts to impose a new reality: one in which Al-Aqsa is no longer a purely Islamic sanctuary, but a contested space open to extremist rituals and settler dominance.

Hassan Khater, head of the Jerusalem International Centre, warned of a dangerous shift. "Through these violations and Talmudic rituals, Israel is trying to project the illusion that Al-Aqsa is now a shared religious site," he said, calling the eastern section of the mosque the most vulnerable. Settlers now regularly perform prayers there under the protection of Israeli forces.

In just the first three days of Passover, over 3,000 settlers—including rabbis, Temple activists, and members of the Knesset—stormed the mosque compound. At the same time, Palestinians were blocked from entering their own holy site, as Israeli police sealed the area off and transformed it into a military zone.

Even the Bab al-Rahma cemetery, resting place for generations of Jerusalemites, has not been spared. Settlers invaded it too, performing rituals in open defiance of its sanctity.

What’s unfolding is not merely a series of religious provocations—it is a calculated effort to erase the Islamic identity of Al-Aqsa and Jerusalem itself. Dozens of extremist organisations are working hand in hand, backed by state power and generous funding, to turn a site of worship into a battleground for supremacy.

As Palestinians resist this forced rewriting of history, Khater and others are calling on Arab and Islamic nations to break their silence. The longer the world watches without action, the closer Israel comes to turning this holy place into a symbol of conquest instead of coexistence.