File Photo: The Dome of the Rock shrine is lit up at dusk at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, East Jerusalem, occupied Palestine. AFP
In a joint statement, the foreign ministers of Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar criticized Israeli authorities for preventing worshippers from entering the compound and imposing security restrictions around the Old City of Jerusalem.
The ministers said the measures violate the historical status quo governing holy sites in Jerusalem and called on Israel to reopen the mosque and allow worshippers free access.
The statement expressed the ministers’ “absolute rejection and condemnation” of the measures, as well as Israel’s continued “provocative practices” at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and against worshippers.
They also reaffirmed that the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf, which operates under Jordan’s Ministry of Awqaf, Islamic Affairs, and Holy Places, is the authority responsible for administering the site and regulating entry to the compound, and stressed that Israel has no sovereignty over occupied Jerusalem or over its Islamic and Christian holy sites.
The ministers urged the international community to take a firm stance to halt Israel's ongoing violations and illegal practices against Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem.
The closure has coincided with the final 10 days of Ramadan, a period when tens of thousands of Palestinians traditionally gather at the mosque for nightly prayers and the Itikaf spiritual retreat.
Footage circulating online in recent days has shown the compound largely empty, an unusual scene during one of the busiest periods of the Islamic holy month.
According to the Jerusalem Governorate, Israeli authorities have kept the mosque closed for 12 consecutive days, citing security concerns linked to the ongoing US-Israeli war on Iran.
The governorate said the closure has prevented Friday prayers, Taraweeh prayers, and Itikaf during the final days of Ramadan.
An imam at the mosque, speaking anonymously, told Al Jazeera that the compound’s prayer halls and courtyards have remained largely empty.
“Al-Aqsa is sad—there is no one in its courtyards,” the imam said, adding that in previous years tens of thousands of worshippers would gather there every night during the last days of Ramadan.
The current restrictions have also limited access to the Old City of Jerusalem, with only residents and a small number of traders allowed to enter, according to Palestinian officials.
Authorities in Jerusalem say the mosque has rarely been closed since Israel captured East Jerusalem during the Six-Day War in 1967.
Officials also warned that Israeli groups have called for the mosque compound to remain closed until the end of the war and for Passover rituals to be performed at the site, raising fears of further tensions.
The Al-Aqsa compound, spanning about 144 dunums, is the third holiest site in Islam, and has long been a focal point of tensions in Jerusalem.
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