Thousands Attend First Tarawih Prayer of Ramadan at Al-Aqsa Mosque

(MENAFN) Thousands of Palestinians gathered Tuesday evening at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque to perform the first Tarawih prayer of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, amid a visible presence of Israeli police across the site.

Worshippers filled both the mosque’s covered prayer halls and open courtyards, with Sheikh Yusuf Abu Sneineh, the preacher of Al-Aqsa Mosque, leading the evening prayers, according to eyewitness accounts. Online footage showed Israeli police stationed inside the compound, moving among attendees during the prayers.

Earlier in the day, Sheikh Mohammed Hussein, Grand Mufti of Jerusalem and the Palestinian territories, announced that Wednesday would mark the first day of Ramadan. “The crescent of Ramadan has been sighted in accordance with Islamic legal procedures,” he confirmed, noting that February 18, 2026 corresponds to the start of Ramadan 1447 in the Islamic calendar.

The prayers took place amid heightened tensions in occupied East Jerusalem, especially around the Old City and the Al-Aqsa compound, where Israeli authorities have increased security measures, including arrests and temporary bans on religious figures and activists. The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor reported that restrictions across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, intensified ahead of Ramadan, affecting access to holy sites.

According to the Jerusalem Governorate, over 250 orders barring Palestinians from entering Al-Aqsa have been issued since the start of 2026. On Monday evening, Israeli police detained Sheikh Mohammad Al-Abbasi, the mosque’s imam, before releasing him and imposing a one-week ban from the mosque, which can be renewed.

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