Over 2,000 Jewish worshippers visited the Temple Mount site on Sunday, marking Tisha B'Av – the day of mourning the destruction of the ancient Temples in Jerusalem and the subsequent calamities and exile that have befallen the Jewish people.
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Jewish ascension to the site, which houses the Dome and the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque, is severely restricted. Entrance is allowed on Tisha B'Av which is always mired in security tensions, as the Palestinians object to any Jewish presence on the mount.
Operation Breaking Dawn – an extensive Israeli counterterrorism campaign against the Palestinian Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip – has exacerbated tensions in the volatile flashpoint. The Jerusalem District Police declared high alert in the capital, deploying hundreds of additional troops in the Old City, especially around the Western Wall, where thousands of Jews have been gathering since Saturday night to pray.
Worshippers began gathering at the entrance to the Temple Mount in the early hours of Sunday morning. Seven were detained for violating police orders about the proper conduct at the site.
Controversial MK Itamar Ben-Gvir, leader of the far-right Otzma Yehudit party, visited the mount as well, potentially aggravating the already significant tensions at the site. Calls of "Allahu Akbar" ("God is great") and "Itbah al-yahud" ("slaughter the Jew") echoed across the complex as he made his way in. He replied by yelling "Am Yisrael Chai" ("long live the Jewish people.")
Ben-Gvir's office said he received death threats on Facebook and on his personal smartphone over the visit.
"I will not be intimidated by threats. The police have to catch the people making these threats," he said, adding that he plans to pray for the safety of the troops engaged in Operation Breaking Dawn.
Temple Mount activist Tom Nisani said that "the Ascension to the Temple Mount on Tisha B'Av is a test for Israeli authorities. The upcoming pilgrimage to the Temple Mount is expected to be the largest since the days of the Temples themselves. The thousands of worshippers prove in their actions that the Temple Mount has long since become part of the Israeli consensus. The time has come to prevent Hamas and Islamic Jihad from running the country."
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