Scenes of Israeli settlers storming Al-Aqsa Mosque and desecrating its courtyards have intensified year after year, alongside ongoing Judaisation efforts in Jerusalem and against Islamic holy sites.
This trend was particularly visible during this year’s Jewish Sukkot holiday, also known as the Feast of Tabernacles, when 4,693 settlers entered Al-Aqsa over three days.
On the fourth day of Sukkot, a further 966 settlers entered the mosque compound through the Moroccan Gate under heavy protection from Israeli occupation forces, according to the Jerusalem Governorate. They performed Talmudic rituals and prayers, sang collectively and clapped inside the courtyards.
The Jerusalem Governorate said settlers carried out the rituals under the protection of Israeli forces. It also reported that settlers assaulted Palestinians near Damascus Gate, including by beating and dragging them, before publishing footage of the attacks on their social media accounts.
September also witnessed repeated settler incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque, including one on Monday involving 1,731 settlers.
According to Jerusalem Governorate data, more than 40,661 settlers entered Al-Aqsa Mosque between the beginning of 2026 and the end of August. Around 800 orders banning Jerusalem residents from entering the mosque were also issued between the beginning of the year and early September.
As these incursions have expanded, so too have the religious rituals performed by settler groups inside the mosque compound. Practices once carried out discreetly have increasingly become public, collective and organised, with direct protection from Israeli forces.
Full-Body Prostration
One of the most prominent rituals is full-body prostration, in which the worshipper lies completely flat on the ground, with the face and body directed towards what is considered the Jewish direction of prayer at the site, towards the Dome of the Rock.
The practice is regarded as one of the highest forms of Talmudic worship.
Settlers also perform Shacharit morning prayers and Mincha afternoon prayers, which include recitations, spoken supplications, bowing and rocking movements.
Religious Objects and Ritual Instruments
The rituals have increasingly involved bringing religious items into the Al-Aqsa compound.
Blowing the Shofar
Settlers have blown the shofar, a ram’s horn, inside Al-Aqsa, particularly during the Jewish New Year and Yom Kippur.
The Four Species During Sukkot
During Sukkot, settlers have carried and waved ritual plants associated with the Jewish holiday, including palm and willow branches, inside the mosque courtyards.
Priestly Clothing
Some settlers have entered wearing white clothing associated with the priests of the proposed Temple, along with religious items such as tefillin.
Entering in Traditional Jewish Religious Dress
Some incursions have involved settlers entering barefoot, treating this as part of the religious sanctity they attribute to the site.
Other practices have included bringing small cups of wine into the compound and performing consecration prayers over them, as well as ritual handwashing.
Settlers have also conducted individual celebrations inside the courtyards, including Jewish marriage ceremonies and coming-of-age celebrations for children.
Attempts to Bring Sacrificial Offerings
Temple groups have repeatedly attempted to bring animal sacrifices, including sheep, into the Al-Aqsa compound, along with agricultural offerings.
There have also been attempts to introduce ashes associated with the “red heifer” for use in purification rituals connected to Temple traditions.
How the Rituals Have Changed
The Talmudic rituals performed by Temple groups and settlers inside Al-Aqsa Mosque have undergone a major transformation in recent years.
Practices that were previously individual, concealed and carried out cautiously have developed into public, collective and increasingly formalised religious ceremonies conducted under direct protection from Israeli occupation forces.
From Secrecy to Open Worship
In earlier years, settlers generally moved quickly through the compound and whispered prayers discreetly during incursions.
Those caught praying openly were sometimes removed by Israeli forces in an attempt to prevent tensions from escalating.
That situation has changed.
Prayers are now conducted collectively and aloud. Torah passages are read openly, while full-body prostration has become increasingly visible and frequent. These activities are now carried out without Israeli forces intervening to stop them.
Judicial Legitimisation
Israeli courts, including the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court, have issued rulings and judicial interpretations supporting Jewish prayer at Al-Aqsa on the basis of what they describe as the “right to freedom of worship”.
At the same time, the role of Israeli forces has shifted from regulating settler incursions towards directly protecting them.
Forces now secure designated routes and time periods during which the rituals take place. Muslim worshippers and Palestinians maintaining a presence at the mosque have also been detained or removed to prevent them from confronting or obstructing the settlers.
The Rise of Priestly Rituals and Preparations for the Temple
The rituals have increasingly moved towards practices associated with the priesthood and physical preparations promoted by Temple groups.
Priestly Garments
Settlers have begun entering the compound wearing clothing associated with the “Temple priests”, including white garments and entering without shoes.
Some also wear the tallit, the Jewish prayer shawl, and tefillin.
The Shofar
Blowing the shofar has developed from an isolated individual act into a repeated and deliberate ritual during Jewish religious occasions, particularly the Jewish New Year and Yom Kippur.
According to the framing promoted by these groups, the act is intended to proclaim Jewish “sovereignty and control” over the site.
Religious Materials Inside the Compound
Settlers have increasingly succeeded in bringing religious materials into Al-Aqsa, including the four plant species used during Sukkot, religious books and prayer items, which have then been distributed and used inside the courtyards.
Intensifying Attempts to Perform Sacrifices
Temple groups have also moved beyond merely advocating for the slaughter of the Passover sacrifice.
Some groups have offered financial rewards and allocated money to individuals who successfully smuggle goats or sheep into the Al-Aqsa compound for sacrificial purposes.
Public reenactments of the sacrificial slaughter are also held annually near the walls of Al-Aqsa.
Groups have additionally gathered to seek rabbinical rulings declaring that the conditions of time and place are suitable for carrying out the sacrifice.
Entrenching Temporal and Spatial Division
The expansion of these practices has also been accompanied by efforts to entrench a temporal and spatial division of Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Under the temporal arrangement, regular daily periods have been established for settler incursions, particularly in the morning and afternoon. During these periods, the movement of Muslims is restricted in areas through which the settler groups pass.
The spatial dimension has centred heavily on the eastern section of the mosque compound and the area surrounding the Bab al-Rahma prayer hall.
Settler groups have increasingly used this area for lengthy prayers and extended stays, gradually turning it into what resembles an undeclared synagogue inside the Al-Aqsa compound.
