Hundreds of Israelis entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East Jerusalem on 23 July 2026, in what analysts called one of the largest such visits of the year. The visit coincided with Tisha B'Av, a Jewish day of mourning for the destruction of two ancient temples. TRT World reported that more than 2,500 Israelis took part, a higher number than the "hundreds" cited by AFP and Arab News. The Palestinian Authority said it expected the total to reach about 5,000 by sunset, according to Al Jazeera.

Israel's far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir entered the compound under heavy police protection. In his government role, Ben-Gvir is in charge of the Israeli police, which means he directly controls the forces guarding the site. He has now visited the Al-Aqsa compound at least 16 times since taking office. Speaking to local media on 23 July, Ben-Gvir said Jews were praying and "feeling like owners" at the site, adding: "this never happened here before" (Al Jazeera). He also waved an Israeli flag on the compound, as did Likud lawmaker Amit Halevi and Rabbi Shimshon Elboim, while others sang the Israeli national anthem (Times of Israel.

Israeli police allowed the visitors to pray, sing, and bow down across the site. This breaks longstanding rules that govern the Al-Aqsa compound, which prohibit Jewish prayer there. The Times of Israel confirmed that some Jews prayed openly during the Tisha B'Av visit. Traditionally, Orthodox Jews have considered it forbidden to enter the compound at all, but the Religious Zionist movement has pushed for more Jews to try to pray there.

Ben-Gvir was accompanied by a far-right member of Israel's parliament who has called to "get rid of all the mosques" and "construct the Temple" (Times of Israel. Ben-Gvir himself promised to expand Jewish access to the site. His past is relevant to understanding the seriousness of these actions: he has previously been convicted of incitement to racism and supporting a terrorist organisation (Al Jazeera.

Jordan condemned Ben-Gvir's visit to the site on 23 July (Jerusalem Post. Jordan's condemnation carries particular weight because the country serves as the custodian, or protector, of the Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated "We prevented the destruction of Third Temple" in remarks connected to the Tisha B'Av events, as reported on 22 July.

The 23 July visit did not happen in isolation. On or around 19 July, Ben-Gvir joined a pro-settlement march toward the Gaza Strip under the slogan "After 21 years, we're returning home." Israeli national elections are scheduled for October 2026 after the parliament was dissolved, and analysts described the Al-Aqsa visit as one of a likely series of provocative moves by Ben-Gvir ahead of those elections (Al Jazeera.

The broader context here is a gradual breaking down of the rules at one of the most sensitive religious sites in the world. The compound is known to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif and to Jews as the Temple Mount. For years, it has been governed by a delicate arrangement: Jordan looks after the Muslim holy sites, while Israel controls who enters and handles security. Under this arrangement, non-Muslims may visit during set hours but are not allowed to pray. The open prayer, flag-raising, and singing of the national anthem that police permitted on 23 July break from that arrangement. The fact that a cabinet minister who controls the police force himself took part raises questions about whether law enforcement at the site is separate from political activism.

The timing matters. Ben-Gvir's political identity is built on strong territorial and religious claims, and with elections coming in October, high-profile actions at contested sites can serve as a way to rally his supporters. His past conviction for incitement to racism and support for a terrorist organisation would, in many countries, have prevented him from holding a security role. In Israel's current government, his Otzma Yehudit party holds seats that the coalition needs to stay in power, which gives him influence beyond what his party's size would suggest.

The stakes go beyond Israeli politics. Jordan's condemnation signals that the visit has already drawn a diplomatic response. The Al-Aqsa compound has triggered wider regional conflict before, and repeated mass visits facilitated by Israeli police, combined with calls to remove mosques and build a Third Temple, risk provoking reactions from Palestinian groups and neighbouring countries. Netanyahu's remark about preventing "the destruction of Third Temple" ties the government's message to the Religious Zionist view of the site, suggesting the weakening of the rules has support from the prime minister himself rather than being a lone initiative by one minister.

What happens next will likely depend on whether the October elections produce a government that either limits or gives more power to Ben-Gvir's faction, and whether international actors who have historically supported the existing arrangements, mainly Jordan and the United States, go beyond condemning the visit and apply real diplomatic pressure.