Forty Thousand Muslims Pray at Al-Aqsa to Mark 1st Day of Eid al-Adha

Around 40,000 Palestinians offered Eid al-Adha prayer at Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem on Sunday, but there was no festive atmosphere, instead mourning the victims of Israel’s ongoing war on the Gaza Strip for over eight months now.
The Islamic Endowments Department in Jerusalem said in a statement that about 40,000 worshippers performed Eid al-Adha prayers due to the strict closure on worshippers preventing thousands from entering.
The (Israeli) occupation forces attacked worshippers on Sunday morning on their way to Al-Aqsa Mosque and as they were leaving it and prevented dozens from entering to perform Eid prayers.”
Meanwhile, thousands of Palestinians performed Eid al-Adha prayers at the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, in the southern occupied West Bank, despite security restrictions imposed by the Israeli army on the entry of worshippers.
Head of the Hebron Endowments Department, Ghassan Al-Rajabi, told Anadolu that “the measures taken by the occupation on Eid Al-Adha aim to prevent Palestinians’ access to holy sites, especially the Ibrahimi Mosque.”
“Despite all these measures, between 8,000 and 10,000 Palestinians offered Eid al-Adha prayers in the mosque,” he added.
Worshippers must pass through military checkpoints and then electronic gates to enter the Ibrahimi Mosque and pray there, according to Anadolu correspondent.
The Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, or the Feast of Sacrifice, commemorates Prophet Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son at God’s command.
This year’s Eid al-Adha holiday comes amid an Israeli continued brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip since an Oct. 7 attack by Hamas despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.
Nearly 37,300 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza by the Israeli forces since October last year, most of them women and children, and almost 85,200 others injured, according to local health authorities.