A total of 448 Israeli occupiers stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem on Thursday, the first day of its reopening after being closed since Feb. 28.
An official from the Islamic Waqf Department in Jerusalem, who requested anonymity, told Anadolu that "448 (settlers) occupiers stormed the mosque compound during the morning period and after the noon prayer."
Eyewitnesses said the occupiers entered through Bab al-Magharibah on the western side of the compound, under heavy escort by Israeli police.
They added that the incursions were accompanied by violations, including loud singing, dancing, and performing prayers.
Israeli police had closed the mosque's gates on Feb. 28, citing the need to prevent gatherings during wartime with Iran, in line with army instructions.
Since then, access to the site had been restricted to mosque guards and some employees of the Islamic Waqf Department.
The compound reopened at dawn on Thursday, with hundreds of Muslim worshippers performing prayers.
Witnesses also said Israeli police detained three Muslim worshippers from inside the compound without providing reasons.
Israel had completely shut access to Al-Aqsa Mosque on Feb. 28, coinciding with its attacks on Iran, allowing only mosque staff and officials from the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf to pray on site, while other Palestinians were forced to worship in smaller mosques across the city.
Authorities also prevented Eid al-Fitr prayers from being held at the site this year, marking the first such restriction since Israel's occupation of East Jerusalem in 1967.
Israeli authorities also closed the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, one of Christianity's holiest sites in Jerusalem, during the same period.
