East jerusalem: Fifty-seven years after the arson attack on Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem on Aug. 21, 1969, practices allowing Jewish religious rituals and worship inside the compound have increased, with Palestinian and Jordanian authorities describing them as attempts to alter the holy site's "historic and legal status quo."
According to Anadolu Agency, the 57th anniversary of the burning of Al-Aqsa Mosque comes at a time when Israeli police, since the start of 2026, have allowed Jews to perform religious rituals, collective prayers and prostration, as well as raise Israeli flags in the mosque's courtyards. This year also marks the first time that Jewish prayer texts and prayer books used in Jewish worship have been allowed inside Al-Aqsa Mosque. Palestinian and Jordanian authorities warn that these practices constitute steps toward changing the historic and legal status quo that has governed Al-Aqsa Mosque for decades.
The Qibli Mosque, located within the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, was attacked on Aug. 21, 1969, by Denis Michael Rohan, an Australian Jewish extremist. The fire started by Rohan completely destroyed the Saladin Minbar (pulpit) and the mosque's southern wall. The fire also damaged the roof, dome, walls, decorations, and windows of the Qibli Mosque, as well as parts of the Omar Mosque, the Mihrab of Zakariya, and the Maqam of the Forty. Palestinians from Jerusalem and various cities across the occupied West Bank, together with firefighting teams, intervened to extinguish the blaze.
Israeli authorities detained Rohan two days after the incident. He confessed that he had started the fire because of religious beliefs connected to the rebuilding of the Jewish Temple. In December 1969, an Israeli court ruled that Rohan bore no criminal responsibility on the grounds that he was mentally ill and ordered that he be placed in an institution for treatment. The fire triggered widespread protests across the Arab and Islamic world. After the incident, the first Islamic Summit was held in Rabat, Morocco, in September 1969, leading to the establishment of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), later renamed the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
Fifty-seven years after the arson attack, warnings by Palestinian and Jordanian authorities are now focused on changes concerning access to the mosque and practices permitted by Israeli police in its courtyards. At the beginning of 2026, Israeli police allowed, for the first time, papers containing Jewish prayer texts to be brought into Al-Aqsa Mosque. In the following months, these practices developed into open prayers, collective religious rituals, prostration, and dancing in the mosque's courtyards.
After the US-Israeli war with Iran began on Feb. 28, Israel closed Al-Aqsa Mosque to Muslim worshippers. The Jerusalem Governorate announced that the holy site reopened on April 9 after 40 days, the longest period of closure since Israel's occupation of East Jerusalem in 1967. The Jerusalem Governorate reported that 25,604 Israeli settlers entered Al-Aqsa Mosque in the first half of 2026, while another 24,912 people entered under the pretext of tourism. In the same period, Jewish religious rituals such as dancing, prostration, and blowing horns were carried out in the courtyards, Israeli flags were raised, and the daily entry period to the mosque was extended to six and a half hours.
One of the days that saw the largest number of entries into Al-Aqsa Mosque was July 23. According to the Jerusalem Governorate, as many as 4,248 Israeli settlers entered the mosque compound that day to mark the so-called Tisha B'Av commemoration. The group, which included Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, members of parliament, officials, and rabbis, performed collective prayers, religious rituals, and prostration in the mosque's courtyards and raised Israeli flags. The Jerusalem Islamic Waqf Department, meanwhile, said that 3,228 people entered Al-Aqsa Mosque during the morning hours alone.
Jordan, which formally manages the compound, described the July 23 entries as "a clear violation of the historic and legal status quo" and "a desecration" of the sanctity of Al-Aqsa Mosque. Jordan stressed that the 144-acre (approximately 58-hectare) compound is exclusively a Muslim place of worship and that the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf Department is responsible for administering the mosque and regulating access.
On Aug. 16, Israeli police allowed the Jewish prayer book "Siddur" to be brought into Al-Aqsa Mosque. Previously, only papers containing prayer texts had been permitted inside, but from that date onward, complete prayer books were also allowed into the mosque. On the same day, the Wadi Hilweh Information Center reported that 179 Israeli occupiers entered Al-Aqsa Mosque. According to the center, some members of the group openly performed religious rituals in the mosque's courtyards, while others carried prayer books and prayer shawls used during worship.
Two days later, the Jerusalem Affairs Department of the Palestine Liberation Organization described the move as "a dangerous escalation." The department said practices at Al-Aqsa Mosque had evolved from silent religious rituals to prostration and collective prayers, and then to the introduction of complete prayer books into the mosque.
Under the 1994 Wadi Araba Treaty signed between Jordan and Israel, Jordan is recognized as the country responsible for religious affairs in East Jerusalem. Under another agreement signed in 2013 between Jordan's King Abdullah and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Jordan was also granted custodianship over Jerusalem and its holy sites. According to the agreement, Al-Aqsa Mosque remains under the care of the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf Department, which operates under Jordan's Ministry of Awqaf, Islamic Affairs and Holy Places.
Earlier, Jews visited Al-Aqsa Mosque only with the permission of the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf Department. Since 2003, however, under a unilateral Israeli decision that Palestinians and Jordan say violates the Waqf's authority, Jews have entered the Muslim holy site under Israeli police protection. Israeli authorities maintain that the historic status quo at Al-Aqsa Mosque, under which only Muslims are permitted to worship while members of other religions may only visit, remains in place. However, Jewish extremists are frequently filmed praying and performing religious rituals during visits to Al-Aqsa Mosque under Israeli police protection.