Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH —The Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed Saudi Arabia's condemnation of the storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem by Israeli officials and settlers under the protection of occupation forces. In a statement, the ministry reiterated Saudi Arabia’s strongest condemnation of the continued attacks on the sanctity of Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Saudi Arabia affirmed its categorical rejection of anything that would undermine the historical and legal status of Jerusalem and its holy sites. The Kingdom called on the international community to hold the Israeli occupation authorities accountable for their serious and ongoing violations against Islamic holy sites and innocent civilians in the State of Palestine.

Far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir on Wednesday led illegal settlers in storming the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound under protection from Israeli police, the Palestinian official news agency Wafa reported.

Illegal settlers, led by Ben-Gvir, entered the mosque’s courtyards, carried out provocative tours, and performed Talmudic rituals coinciding with the second day of the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. Israeli authorities imposed strict measures around the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and its gates, deploying large reinforcements of police and security forces to secure the settlers’ incursions.

The Islamic Waqf Department in Jerusalem said that 1,300 illegal Israeli settlers stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque on Wednesday morning. This comes a day after more than 500 illegal Israeli settlers stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque on Tuesday, it said. The incursions into Al-Aqsa have increased alongside Israel's genocidal war in the Gaza Strip since October 2023, as well as military offensive in the occupied West Bank.