Ben-Gvir Storms Al-Aqsa Compound for Third Time This Year

Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem accompanied by Israeli settlers, performing Jewish prayers at the site — his third such incursion in 2026. The visit violates the status quo arrangement in place since 1967, under which non-Muslim prayer is prohibited at the compound administered by the Jordanian Waqf. Palestinian and Jordanian authorities condemned the visit as a 'desecration of its sanctity,' drawing widespread Palestinian condemnation across the occupied territories.