Why Do Zionists Want Al-Quds?

Imagine the peace of Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem – one of three holy sites in Islam – its golden dome shining under the sun. Now imagine that sacred sanctuary empty, its gates locked, and its halls silent when they should be filled with prayers. This isn’t a scene from a distant past or a dystopian movie. This happened recently, and it’s happening now. In June 2025, Zionist forces completely closed off Al-Aqsa Mosque for nearly two weeks, stopping Muslims from praying, in the largest shutdown of the site since the Covid-19 pandemic. At the same time, Zionist war criminal and prime minister, Bibi Netanyahu, was literally digging in underneath this holy site – boasting about tunnels being excavated beneath Al-Aqsa. If that alarms you, it should. Al-Aqsa is under threat like never before, and it’s time for Muslims and the global community to pay attention and act.

Let’s start with the unprecedented closure. In mid-June 2025, amid a flare-up of conflict involving Iran, the Zionist Occupation shut the doors of Al-Aqsa “until further notice,” citing security concerns. For 12 days, Palestinians were prevented from entering their own mosque, with only a token 500 worshippers allowed at one point – a tiny fraction of the tens of thousands who usually attend Friday prayers. Occupation Soldiers closed the compound’s gates and even set up checkpoints blocking entry to Jerusalem’s Old City, so that worshippers from outside the Old City couldn’t reach the mosque. The result? Al-Aqsa’s courtyards fell eerily quiet.

For Muslims worldwide, seeing Al-Aqsa empty like this is heart-wrenching. Zionist officials tried to justify the closure on the grounds of “public safety” due to hostilities with Iran. But Palestinians suspected something more sinister, that ‘Israel’ was exploiting the situation as a pretext to change the status quo at the holy site. And there’s good reason to be wary. During this closure, Zionist forces didn’t just stand guard outside – they stormed into Al-Aqsa’s buildings. Heavily armed Occupation Soldiers raided the prayer halls, offices of the Waqf (the Islamic trust that manages the mosque), even the fire department by the Dome of the Rock. In these raids, they rifled through Qur’an storage rooms and allegedly tossed copies of the Holy Qur’an onto the ground in the process. They arrested Al-Aqsa’s security guards and staff – four guards were detained and later banned from the mosque compound. Think about that for a second, the guardians of the mosque were removed, while worshippers were locked out.

If this all feels like a blatant attack on Muslim worship and a power grab over Al-Aqsa, that’s exactly what many experts and officials are warning. The Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Sheikh Ekrima Sabri, publicly stated that ‘Israel’ is “exploiting the war” – whether the genocide on Gaza or tensions with Iran – “to tighten control over Al-Aqsa Mosque”. He called it a “blatant attack on Muslims’ right to worship” and an attempt to impose Zionist colonial domination over the holy mosque. In other words, under the cover of security measures, ‘Israel’ is chipping away at the longstanding arrangement (the status quo) that has governed Al-Aqsa since 1967. That status quo says Al-Aqsa is a Muslim prayer site under Jordanian custodianship, where non-Muslims may visit but not pray. Yet now, we see moves to undermine it by limiting Muslim access, undermining Jordan’s supervisory role, and tolerating or even encouraging activities that were previously forbidden.

While Al-Aqsa’s gates were closed to Palestinian worshippers, something else was happening, illegal Zionist settlers were granted entry and free rein like never before. In late May 2025, during the so-called Jerusalem Day (which celebrates ‘Israel’s’ 1967 forced ethnic cleansing of over 300,00 Palestinians), over 2,000+ illegal Zionist settlers stormed the Al-Aqsa compound under heavy IOF escort. They marched through, chanting genocidal slogans like “Death to Arabs” and “Flatten Gaza”, in scenes of pure provocation. Even war criminal, Itamar Ben-Gvir, ‘Israel’s’ far-right National Security Minister, joined in these incursions and declared – for the first time – that Jewish prayer is now permitted at Al-Aqsa. This flies in the face of decades of policy (even ‘Israel’ had officially forbidden Jewish worship there to avoid conflict). By saying this, Ben-Gvir was effectively shattering a red line. Palestinian and Muslim officials warn that ‘Israel’ is trying to impose its control both above and below ground at Al-Aqsa.

And that brings us to the tunnels. Zionist war criminal Benjamin Netanyahu chose that same Jerusalem Day to release a provocative video of himself walking through a massive tunnel network dug under Al-Aqsa. This tunnel is part of the controversial “City of David” excavation project, which runs from the Silwan neighborhood of East Jerusalem into the earth beneath the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound. Netanyahu strutted through this underground passage as if to say: “We control Jerusalem above ground and below it.” The timing – on the anniversary of Israel’s occupation of East Jerusalem – and the optics were no accident. It was a deliberate show of colonial dominance. Archaeologists and Palestinian residents have long condemned these excavations as politicized archaeology aimed at “Judaizing” Jerusalem’s identity and erasing its Arab and Islamic heritage. By digging under Palestinian homes and holy sites, and then parading in those tunnels, the Zionist Occupation sends a clear message that they intend to cement colonial domination over all of Jerusalem, even if it means literally undermining the foundations of Al-Aqsa.

At this point you might wonder, Why is Al-Aqsa such a flashpoint? For Muslims, Al-Aqsa Mosque is central to our history and faith. It was the first qibla (direction of prayer) in Islam, before the Kaaba in Mecca. It’s believed to be the place from which Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) ascended to the heavens during the Isra and Mi’raj night journey. Its significance is deeply spiritual. So when Al-Aqsa is violated or threatened, it’s felt by over 1.5 billion Muslims worldwide as a personal grievance. Beyond religion, Al-Aqsa and the surrounding Old City of Al-Quds (Jerusalem) are a cornerstone of Palestinian identity and heritage. To Palestinians – both Muslim and Christian – Zionist encroachment on Al-Aqsa is seen as part of a broader attempt to erase them from their city.

History shows that Al-Aqsa is a red line. Attempts by Zionist forces or settlers to change the status quo have repeatedly triggered mass unrest and resistance. In 2017, ‘Israel’ installed metal detectors at Al-Aqsa’s gates, and Palestinians responded with mass protests and prayers in the streets and eventually ‘Israel’ was forced to back down and remove them. In 2000, war criminal, Ariel Sharon’s armed visit to Al Aqsa sparked the Second Intifada uprising. Even further back, in 1969 an extremist Zionist arson attack on Al-Aqsa’s pulpit outraged the Muslim world and led to the formation of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). In short, when Al-Aqsa is in danger, millions mobilize.

Now in 2025, we’re witnessing another slow, dangerous creep with closures and raids. It’s another attempt to assert full Zionist control over the site. At the same time, Zionist officials are talking about allowing non-Muslim prayers and showcasing tunnels that literally undercut it. These are massive red flags.

So, why must Muslims – and all people of conscience – act now? Because if we stay silent, the dangers to Al-Aqsa will only grow. What is a 12-day closure now could become a norm of frequent closures or limits on Muslim access. Today it’s one tunnel, tomorrow it might be excavations directly under the mosque building. Today a minister says Jewish prayer is allowed, tomorrow a Zionist court might officially sanction dividing the space or times of worship, as was done at Hebron’s Ibrahimi Mosque after 1994. The pattern is there for those who pay attention.

Al-Aqsa was entrusted to the Muslim Ummah. Generations before us defended it – sometimes with their lives – from Crusaders, colonizers, and occupiers. Now the challenge of our time is here. When our beloved Aqsa is suddenly sealed off by an occupying force – that’s a red line. When that force’s leader smugly walks under its foundations, that’s a red line. If we don’t speak up now, when will we?

Injustice at Al-Aqsa will not end on its own. History is watching how we respond. Today it might be Al-Aqsa, tomorrow, any other sacred place could be at risk if the precedent is set that brute force wins. Al-Aqsa is crying out the Ummah of Muhammad (SAW). But will they answer the call?

Sources:

Beaumont, Peter. “Thousands of Israelis Mark Jerusalem Day as Palestinians Barred from Al-Aqsa Mosque.” The Guardian, 5 June 2024, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/jun/05/thousands-of-israelis-mark-jerusalem-day-as-palestinians-barred-from-al-aqsa-mosque.

“Israel Reopens Al-Aqsa Mosque to Worshippers after Unprecedented Closure.” Middle East Eye, 25 June 2025, https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/al-aqsa-mosque-israel-reopens-unprecedented-closure.

Kingsley, Patrick. “Netanyahu Walks Through Tunnel beneath Old City of Jerusalem, Drawing Palestinian Condemnation.” The New York Times, 5 June 2025, https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/05/world/middleeast/netanyahu-jerusalem-tunnel.html.

MEE Staff. “Israel Closes Al-Aqsa Mosque to Palestinians during Iran Tensions.” Middle East Eye, 20 June 2025, https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-closes-al-aqsa-mosque-palestinians-iran.

Palestinian News & Information Agency (WAFA). “Mufti: Closure of Al-Aqsa a Dangerous Escalation.” WAFA, 24 June 2025, https://english.wafa.ps/Pages/Details/143057.