Al-Aqsa Mosque

Al-Aqsa Mosque occupies the southern edge of the Temple Mount, a walled, trapezoid-shaped enclosure in the southeastern corner of Jerusalem's Old City.[1] The broader compound is estimated at approximately 36 to 40 acres and includes the Dome of the Rock, open plazas, courtyards, gates, walls, smaller structures, and underground spaces.[3][2]

The mosque building is a basilica with a narrow central nave flanked by six aisles in its present configuration. An earlier eighth-century phase had as many as fourteen aisles, making the present building considerably narrower than its predecessor.[1] The southern prayer niche, or mihrab, and a cedar-wood pulpit, or minbar, were historically associated with Sultan Salah al-Din, better known in the West as Saladin. The minbar was destroyed in the 1969 fire.[1]

The compound has nine entrance gates, eight generally used by Muslims.[5] The Mughrabi Gate is designated for non-Muslim visitors and was the only entrance available to Jews and other non-Muslims at the time described by the cited status-quo study.[6] The Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque are architecturally distinct: the former is a shrine built over the stone associated with Muhammad's ascent to heaven, while Al-Aqsa has served as the principal building for congregational prayer.[1][2] During the 1970s, the Dome of the Rock gradually also came to be used for regular prayers, particularly Friday prayers attended primarily by Muslim women.[7]

Muslim tradition regards Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab — also known as Caliph Omar — as the first Muslim worshipper in the southern part of the plaza after the Muslim conquest of Jerusalem.[8] Following the conquest in May 638 CE, Umar ordered the area cleared and a house of prayer built.[1] An early, modest wooden prayer structure is believed to have stood at the site shortly thereafter.[8]

The stone mosque was probably constructed by the Umayyad caliph al-Walid, son of Abd al-Malik, although he may have completed work begun by his father. A Christian monk who visited Jerusalem in 680 CE reportedly described a large mosque at the southern end of the Temple Mount, suggesting that a substantial structure already existed there.[8] Other cited accounts differ on chronology: the Jewish Virtual Library gives 715 CE while noting that some sources use 705 CE, and CAMERA dates the mosque to 715 CE and the separate Dome of the Rock to 688–691 CE.[1][9]

The mosque was repeatedly damaged by earthquakes and rebuilt in different architectural styles. A major collapse during the 1927 earthquake required renovations lasting several years; British archaeologist Robert Hamilton and another Christian photographer documented mosaics, passageways, cisterns, and other features in and beneath the building during that work.[10]

After the Crusaders captured Jerusalem in 1099, Al-Aqsa was converted for Crusader use as a palace and became known as the Templum Solomonis, or Temple of Solomon.[1][10] The Dome of the Rock was converted into a church called Templum Domini, and a Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs account states that the area later known as Solomon's Stables was used for horses.[10][11] Saladin retook Jerusalem in 1187 and restored the Islamic buildings to Muslim worship.[1][10] The mihrab and cedar-wood minbar were associated with his restoration, although the minbar was destroyed in the 1969 arson.[1]

During much of the Mamluk, Ottoman, and early modern periods, non-Muslims were generally restricted from entering the Haram al-Sharif compound. The Ottomans authorized an exception in 1862 for the future King Edward VII of Britain.[1] A Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs account describes renovations under Grand Mufti Haj Amin al-Husseini in the 1920s and 1930s that added marble columns, reconstructed ceilings, rugs, a museum, and a religious library.[11] The mosque was last substantially rebuilt in 1035, with further restoration in 1938–1942 and after the 1969 fire.[1]

In 1951, King Abdullah of Transjordan — the great-grandfather of Jordan's current King Abdullah — was assassinated in front of Al-Aqsa Mosque.[3]

Jewish tradition identifies the Temple Mount with Mount Moriah, the site of Abraham's binding of Isaac and the location chosen by King Solomon for the First Temple.[1] The First Temple stood until its destruction by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. The Second Temple was constructed approximately seventy years later, underwent a massive expansion under King Herod beginning in 19 BCE, and was destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE.[1] The Temple Mount is therefore considered the holiest site in Judaism. The Western Wall is a surviving retaining wall of Herod's expanded compound and the principal Jewish place of worship nearest the former Temples.[1][12]

The exact placement of the Temple buildings within the wider compound is debated. The Jewish Virtual Library places the Dome of the Rock on or near the approximate Temple site while also recording a proposal that the Temple stood farther north.[1] Jewish attachment to the Mount continued after the Temples' destruction: the same source records that Jews prayed toward the Temple Mount for the Temple's restoration even when access to the site was restricted.[1]

Jewish visits increased substantially in recent years, rising from 20,684 in 2020 to 51,483 in 2022.[1] Israeli courts have treated freedom of worship on the Temple Mount as subject to restrictions justified by public-order and security concerns, while police policy has continued to prohibit organized Jewish prayer there.[1]

For Muslims, the sanctity of Al-Aqsa Mosque and the surrounding compound derives primarily from the Isra and Mi'raj — Muhammad's Night Journey and ascent to heaven.[1] The Quran (17:1) refers to "the farthest mosque," and Islamic tradition identifies the site with that account, giving Al-Aqsa its name.[9] The physically distinct Dome of the Rock houses the stone associated with Muhammad's ascent.[5]

The site was also the first qibla, or direction of prayer, for Muhammad and his early followers before the direction was changed to the Kaaba in Mecca.[5] In Muslim and Palestinian usage, "Al-Aqsa" may denote the wider sacred precinct rather than only the southern mosque building, as reflected in references to the "Al-Aqsa Mosque compound."[2][5] Consequently, reports about events at "Al-Aqsa" do not always refer to the interior of the mosque itself.

The compound became a pan-Islamic religious and national symbol from the era of Grand Mufti Haj Amin al-Husseini and especially after Israel's unification of Jerusalem in 1967.[6] Large crowds gather during Ramadan for evening Tarawih prayers and the pre-dawn Suhur meal.[2]

Israel captured Jerusalem's Old City and the Temple Mount from Jordan during the Six-Day War in June 1967. When Israeli paratroopers entered the compound, Colonel Mordechai Gur announced, "The Temple Mount is in our hands."[1] On June 17, Defense Minister Moshe Dayan met Muslim religious authorities at Al-Aqsa Mosque to formulate the foundation of the postwar status quo.[1] He ordered the Israeli flag lowered and the paratrooper force withdrawn while permitting the Jordanian-appointed Waqf to continue managing religious and civil affairs.[6]

Under the arrangement, Israel assumed sovereignty and security responsibility while the Waqf retained authority over worship, sermons, events, excavations, maintenance, teaching, and conduct within the compound.[13][6] Jews could visit but could not conduct organized prayer; the Western Wall remained the recognized Jewish place of prayer.[1][6]

The 1994 Israel-Jordan peace treaty states that Israel "respects the present special role of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in Muslim Holy shrines in Jerusalem" and gives priority to Jordan's historic role in future permanent-status negotiations.[6] A 2013 Jordanian agreement with the Palestinian Authority reinforced the Hashemite role, while the 2015 Kerry Understandings reaffirmed the arrangement under which Muslims pray at the site and non-Muslims visit.[5][14]

The Waqf's institutional roots are traced to Saladin's establishment of an Islamic religious trust after his 1187 reconquest of Jerusalem.[5] The modern Jerusalem Waqf and Al-Aqsa Mosque Affairs Department has been Jordanian-appointed since 1948, and this arrangement continued after Israel took control in 1967.[2] Jordan's Ministry of Islamic Affairs and Holy Places supports maintenance and pays Waqf staff salaries.[12] In 1993, King Hussein donated $8.2 million to refurbish the Dome of the Rock's golden roof with 80 kilograms of gold leaf.[6]

Non-Muslims may enter through the Mughrabi Gate during designated hours but may not pray in the compound and generally do not enter the Al-Aqsa Mosque building.[5] Israeli police manage access and security, while the Waqf manages religious affairs.[5]

The arrangement has evolved in contested ways. From the 1970s onward, the Dome of the Rock began to be used for regular prayers.[7] Around the beginning of the 2000s, Solomon's Stables became the Al-Marwani Mosque, ancient areas beneath Al-Aqsa were opened for prayer, and open parts of the compound were paved for mass worship.[6] In 2019, the Gate of Mercy prayer area was converted into a mosque.[15]

On August 21, 1969, Al-Aqsa Mosque was deliberately set on fire, severely damaging the building and destroying irreplaceable artifacts, including the cedar-wood minbar associated with Saladin.[1][16] The arsonist was Denis Michael Rohan, a 28-year-old Australian Protestant who had moved to Israel several months earlier and belonged to the Church of God.[17][18] The Center for Israel Education account states that he poured kerosene through a keyhole and ignited it with a match.[17]

Rohan said he believed God had instructed him to clear the site for a Third Temple and that the fire would hasten the coming of the Messiah.[17][18] Israeli authorities arrested him, and the Jerusalem District Court found him guilty and committed him to a mental hospital after he was diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic.[16] He was subsequently deported to Australia.[17]

The fire became a benchmark in later reporting about access to the compound. When Israeli police temporarily closed the site and cancelled Muslim Friday prayers in 2017, the U.S. State Department described it as the first such cancellation since 1969.[19]

The Anti-Defamation League has documented repeated official and media claims in parts of the Middle East that falsely described Rohan as Jewish or alleged Israeli assistance or direction.[20] Contemporary U.S. diplomatic records identify him as an Australian Christian fundamentalist who was charged and convicted by an Israeli court.[16] Those records also show that the Al-Aqsa incident became the point of departure for the first Islamic Summit Conference, which laid groundwork for a permanent Islamic secretariat.[16]

The Temple Mount and Al-Aqsa Mosque have repeatedly served as flashpoints for violence involving Israeli security forces and Palestinian worshippers and rioters, particularly during Ramadan.[2]

From May 7 through May 10, 2021, Palestinian worshippers stockpiled stones, stone slabs, and fireworks within the compound, and Israeli police entered to disperse riots.[21] More than 90,000 worshippers visited on May 8, and approximately 100,000 gathered on May 13. Israeli authorities barred Jewish visitors from the Temple Mount for nineteen days, from May 4 through May 23, citing security concerns.[21]

Clashes during Ramadan in 2022 left approximately 160 Palestinians injured and resulted in around 400 arrests. Confrontations in April 2023 left 50 people injured and at least 400 arrested after Palestinians barricaded themselves inside the mosque.[2]

On July 14, 2017, three Israeli Arab gunmen descended from the Temple Mount, shot and killed Israeli police officers Haiel Staw and Kamil Shnaan, and returned to the compound, where Israeli security forces killed them.[22] The site was temporarily closed and reopened the following Sunday with metal detectors installed at the entrances.[22][19] The Jordanian Waqf objected and called on worshippers to pray outside the gates until the previous arrangements were restored.[22]

In November 2014, Israeli police entered Al-Aqsa Mosque after approximately four months of violence and failed negotiations. Police cited intelligence about projectiles hidden inside and ongoing attacks on visitors and officers; they arrested rioters and confiscated fireworks, rocks, and petrol bombs.[6] The cited study described this as a departure from the longstanding practice of keeping Israeli security forces outside the mosque building.[6]

The governing arrangement is an informal understanding commonly called the "status quo." Its roots are traced to the nineteenth-century Ottoman period, while its present form preserves Waqf administration alongside Israeli security responsibility.[2][4] The Waqf administers religious affairs, maintenance, prayer times, sermons, and conduct rules, while Israeli police manage access and security.[5][13]

The Waqf operates under Jordanian authority, and Jordan's Ministry of Islamic Affairs and Holy Places supports maintenance and staff salaries.[12] Jordanian influence has also extended to parts of the compound's outer walls and, in some cases, Israeli police conduct.[6]

The prohibition on non-Muslim prayer remains the most prominent element of the status quo.[6] Israeli officials have repeatedly stated that the arrangement will not be changed and that organized Jewish prayer will not be permitted.[6] Courts have treated worship rights as subject to public-order and security restrictions, although NGOs and media reported in 2022 that discreet or daily Jewish prayer sometimes occurred with police approval or nonintervention.[1][12]

Jordan's special custodial role is anchored in the 1994 Israel-Jordan peace treaty and reinforced by a 2013 agreement with the Palestinian Authority.[5] A Congressional Research Service account traces the modern custodial arrangement to a 1924 decision by Arab authorities in Jerusalem.[23]

Several overlapping controversies concern the mosque's early chronology, terminology, sovereignty, access, and the political interpretation of the 1969 arson.

The original stone mosque's construction date is not precisely established. Cited sources give completion dates of 705 CE and 715 CE.[1][9] The authorship is also uncertain: an Israeli Ministry of Education account attributes the building probably to al-Walid but allows that he may have completed work begun by Abd al-Malik.[8] The cited chronology therefore does not support a single uncontested founding date.

The meaning and scope of "Al-Aqsa Mosque" also vary. The Jewish Virtual Library uses the name for the gray-domed building at the southern end of the plaza, while other sources use "Al-Aqsa Mosque compound" for the wider Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif precinct.[1][2] This distinction matters when interpreting reports about security actions or violence described as occurring "at Al-Aqsa."

Accounts of the post-1967 status quo differ among stakeholders. Sources describe Israeli sovereignty and security authority alongside Waqf administration, while the Waqf does not recognize Israeli sovereignty at the site.[4][13] A Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs analysis characterizes the Al-Marwani Mosque, the Ancient Al-Aqsa prayer area, and the Gate of Mercy mosque as alterations to the earlier arrangement.[15] Palestinian representatives, by contrast, have described Israeli security measures and restrictions as efforts to erode the status quo.[2]

The 1969 fire remains the subject of misinformation. Denis Michael Rohan was an Australian Protestant, not a Jew or Israeli, and Israeli authorities arrested, tried, and convicted him.[20][16] Claims that the arson was committed by Jews or directed by Israel are contradicted by the documented identity and conviction of the perpetrator.