Sheikh Ikrima Sabri, the sheikh of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, warned of the escalating attacks by the Zionist enemy and its settlers on the mosque, noting that extremist settler groups are conducting unprecedented daily raids, alongside intensified excavation activities targeting the sanctity of the site.

Speaking to Sanad News Agency on Saturday, Sheikh Sabri said that the mosque is currently subjected to the most severe aggression, including official cover for settler raids under the pretext of celebrating the so-called “Passover,” despite its timing not coinciding with the Jewish Passover in April.

He highlighted an unprecedented escalation targeting the religious and historical significance of Al-Aqsa.

Sheikh Sabri explained that extremist groups continue daily incursions into the mosque, conduct digging operations toward the Silwan neighborhood, carry out ongoing arrests at the entrances and exits of the mosque, and attempt to target the Eastern Cemetery “Bab al-Rahma,” aiming to convert it into an internal and external synagogue for prayer.

He emphasized that these measures are not spontaneous but part of a clear and systematic plan aimed at imposing temporal and spatial division of the mosque, ultimately enforcing Israeli sovereignty over it, exploiting the war climate and political control of settlers within the enemy government and the Knesset.

Sheikh Sabri stressed that the current schemes will not alter the legitimate and historical truth of Al-Aqsa, affirming that “the divine right over the mosque is fixed and will not change regardless of the enemy’s arrogance and schemes, and Muslims will remain its guardians and custodians, not relinquishing a single grain of its soil.”

He reaffirmed that Al-Aqsa Mosque will remain purely Islamic and called on the Islamic nation to fulfill its responsibilities toward the first Qibla and the third holiest site in Islam.

Data from Al-Quds indicated a significant increase in the number of mosque intruders during 2025, including unprecedented violations such as overt prayers, blowing the shofar, raising the Zionist enemy flag, and intensified presence in the courtyards during Jewish holidays, in an attempt to impose a new reality and assert “Zionist sovereignty” over the mosque.