Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Saturday, Aug 23, 2025

Hamas holds rally in Gaza over Israeli raids at Al-Aqsa Mosque

Hamas holds rally in Gaza over Israeli raids at Al-Aqsa Mosque

Demonstration held to show solidarity amid continued Israeli raids in occupied Jerusalem and at Al-Aqsa Mosque.

For the second week in a row, thousands of Palestinians participated in a mass rally called by the Hamas movement to show solidarity in the face of continued Israeli raids in occupied Jerusalem and the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The Al-Aqsa Mosque has been at the centre of days of violence and heightened tensions following a series of Israeli incursions into the holy site, which began at the start of the holy month of Ramadan.

At the demonstration in Jabalia refugee camp, in the northern Gaza Strip, protesters held banners declaring Palestinian dominion over the Al-Aqsa Mosque and chanted slogans deploring Israeli attacks against worshippers there.

Suhail al-Hindi, a member of the Hamas political bureau, said the thousands of people from Gaza who joined the march did so to send a message to people in occupied Jerusalem and in the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque.

“We are on your side,” al-Hindi said in a speech.

“We stand with you, support you, protect your decision and defend you,” he said, calling on Palestinians in the West Bank, occupied Jerusalem, and in the 1948 territories, to gather permanently at Al-Aqsa to defend it.

“Palestinian unity represented in Jerusalem, the West Bank, and the 1948 occupied territories, tells the Israeli occupation the Palestinian people are united in resistance and fighting with all what they have,” he said.

A surge of violence in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory during the past month has raised fears of a slide back to a wider conflict similar to last May’s 11-day Israeli assault on Gaza, in which more than 250 Palestinians in Gaza and 13 people in Israel were killed.

Israel carried out air raids in different areas of the Gaza Strip twice last week with the Israeli military saying its fighter jets had attacked military targets.

Earlier this week, rockets were fired from Gaza at Israel, causing minor damage and no injuries, Israeli police said. Four rockets launched from Gaza were intercepted by air defence systems, the Israeli military said.

The rocket fire had heightened expectations among Gazan residents of the possibility of a large-scale Israeli offensive against the Gaza Strip, similar to last year.

A man holds a picture of the Al-Aqsa Mosque during a mass rally on Friday, April 22, 2022, organised by Hamas in northern Gaza


“No one wishes for war”


Islam Abu Nada told Al Jazeera that she expected war to break out after the rocket fire last week.

“Based on what is happening in Al-Aqsa, we had an expectation that the resistance would respond,” the Jabalia resident said at the protest.

Though the incursions into Al-Aqsa had caused tension, no one appears interested in a war, Abu Nada said.

“No one wishes for war,” she said.

“Israel targets civilians and does not differentiate between children, women or the elderly,” she said, adding, “we always feel fear for our children in war.”

Demanding that incursions into Al-Aqsa “stop immediately”, as well as other “provocations” by Israel during the holy month of Ramadan, Abu Nada said it remains to be seen what will occur next.

“We will see what happens,” she said.

Holding a Hamas flag at the rally, Khalil Taim, 35, said Palestinians were defending the Al-Aqsa Mosque which is “the first [direction] Qibla” that Muslims faced to pray.

“It is normal for the resistance to respond to the Israeli violations taking place in Jerusalem,” Taim told Al Jazeera, describing as “illogical” Israel’s incursions into the holy site, and the shooting and killings of Palestinians.

“We are in a liberation battle, and we have no hand [in it] if an escalation erupts,” he said.

“Gaza is used to it.”

Palestinian women take part in Friday’s mass rally to protest against Israeli incursions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque


Israel only understands the language of fighting, said 77-year-old Abd al-Fattah Abd al-Nabi.

Expressing his solidarity with worshippers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, he said there can be no silence about what had occurred and no price was too high to pay to defend the site.

“We demand the resistance not to remain silent about what is happening in Al-Aqsa Mosque, no matter the cost,” he said.

For her part, teenager Malak Al-Masry, from Beit Hanoun, told Al Jazeera how much she feared the sound of Israel’s fighter jets and their recent bombing.

“I instantly thought that war had erupted,” the 17-year-old said of the recent bombings.

“The same scenarios of destruction, fear and people who lost their loved ones poured into my mind,” she said, adding that she hopes that such scenes do not occur again.

In Gaza, Malak said, the people live in fear of devastating war, and they are also outraged at what is occurring at Al-Aqsa.

“We are in Gaza, [caught] between two fires,” she said.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
High-Stakes Trump-Putin Summit on Ukraine Underway in Alaska
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Russia Formally Recognizes Taliban Government in Afghanistan
×