As per reports, on Saturday (23 August), Haroun Nasser al-Din, a member of Hamas’s Political Bureau and head of the Jerusalem Affairs Office, warned that inflammatory calls by Israeli settlers to intensify storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, coinciding with the ‘Jewish New Moon,’ represent an escalation.

• Reportedly, Nasser al-Din stated that these actions are part of an ‘escalating religious war’ against Palestinian land and holy sites. Nasser al-Din emphasised that such provocations violate the sanctity of Islamic holy sites and deeply offend Muslims worldwide.
• Haroun Nasser al-Din reportedly rejected attempts by Israel and extremist groups to impose new realities at Al-Aqsa and urged Palestinians in Jerusalem, the West Bank, and beyond to mobilise and guard the mosque through prayer and presence.
• Hamas also called on the wider Arab and Islamic world to step up responsibilities toward Al-Aqsa and intensify support against settlement encroachment. The group further warned of the repercussions of ‘provocative incursions,’ describing them as terrorist practices with the potential to destabilise the situation in Jerusalem.