Israeli settlers storm Al-Aqsa Mosque on Jewish Passover
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Israeli settlers have stormed Al-Aqsa in commemoration of the Jewish Passover holiday while threatening to perform animal sacrifices inside the mosque complex.
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Israeli police escorted Israeli settlers marking the holiday of Passover to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in the Old City of al-Quds during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan on April 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)
Dozens of Israeli settlers stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied al-Quds on Sunday, with the incursions to continue until 3 PM, extending until next week.
According to Al Mayadeen's correspondent, the large-scale Israeli settler incursions will continue until next Thursday, coinciding with the Jewish Passover, during which settlers are threatening to perform what they refer to as "animal sacrifices" inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex.
من اقتحامات قطعان المستوطنين للمسجد الأقصى صباح اليوم إحياءً لما يُسمّى "عيد الفصح" العبري. pic.twitter.com/Koe9zLxgeo
— القسطل الإخباري (@AlQastalps) April 13, 2025
Passover, a sacred Jewish holiday that commemorates the Israelites' exodus from Egypt during the time of Prophet Moses, holds religious significance in the Jewish calendar. This year, it commences on the evening of April 12 and lasts until April 20.
Watch| Israeli settlers storm the Buraq Wall area west of Al-Aqsa Mosque and perform Talmudic rituals to mark the Jewish holiday of Passover.#Israel pic.twitter.com/DogQkgN0pl
— Al-Jarmaq News (@Aljarmaqnetnews) April 13, 2025
Al-Aqsa is revered as one of the holiest sites for Muslims worldwide. Conversely, Jews refer to the area as the "Temple Mount", citing its historical significance as the location of two ancient Jewish temples.
This comes amid widespread raids by the Israeli Occupation Forces across the West Bank, arresting, wounding, and killing innocent Palestinians.
IOF launches massive raids across West Bank
Israeli forces raided several towns in the occupied West Bank on April 12, wounding at least one Palestinian youth and arresting a child, local sources reported.
After storming the town of Qaryut, southeast of Nablus, Israeli forces imposed a curfew and opened fire on civilians, while further south in Beit Fajjar near Beit Lahm, confrontations erupted, leaving a young Palestinian man shot and wounded by occupation soldiers, with local sources later reporting another injury amid ongoing confrontations.
Simultaneously, Israeli forces raided Beit Iba, west of Nablus, entering through the Deir Sharaf checkpoint, while additional raids targeted Sa’ir northeast of al-Khalil and Beit Awwa west of Dura in the southern al-Khalil district.
Local sources reported the arrest of a Palestinian child in al-Masaaken al-Shaabiyya east of Nablus, with witnesses stating the child was physically assaulted during detention.
IOF assault triggers worst displacement in West Bank
The latest Israeli military operations have triggered the largest wave of displacement in the occupied West Bank since the 1967 Six-Day War, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) highlighted on April 5.
UNRWA said the widespread and ongoing Israeli assaults—beginning on January 21 in Jenin camp and other northern areas—constitute the longest continuous military campaign in the West Bank since the Second Intifada (uprising) in the early 2000s.
The agency described the situation in the northern West Bank as “extremely concerning", citing continued Israeli raids and mass detention campaigns. According to UNRWA, these operations have resulted in systematic destruction, forced displacement, and demolition orders targeting Palestinian families and refugee camps.
According to the United Nations, the Israeli operation has forcibly displaced over 40,000 people from refugee camps and surrounding communities in Jenin and Tulkarm.
