Jerusalem warns of Israeli push to destroy Al-Aqsa and build 'Temple'

The Governorate of Jerusalem has warned of increasingly open and accelerated moves by extremist Jewish groups that it says are now working methodically to target, and ultimately destroy, Al-Aqsa Mosque to replace it with the so-called " Third Temple". 

In a statement on Wednesday, the governorate said the public activities of these groups have become "an organised colonial project" led and supported by political and religious actors within the Israeli establishment, aiming to impose "full sovereignty over Al-Aqsa Mosque and to establish the alleged Temple in its place".

The statement stressed that what is currently being shown through "preparations, rituals, and readiness" is no longer a mere religious dream or myth but a "coordinated colonial project" with institutional backing.

According to the governorate, extremist "Temple groups" are openly intensifying their activities through religious and educational institutions, particularly the Yeshivat Har Habayit school, which recently released videos showing "preparations to build the alleged Temple".

These include "training priests to offer animal sacrifices, sewing their special garments, and creating architectural models representing the supposed Temple" - steps that, it said, aim to prepare public opinion "to accept the idea of construction atop the ruins of Al-Aqsa Mosque".

The governorate linked these efforts to the ongoing rhetoric of Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who, it said, "is racing against time to impose a plan of temporal and spatial division at the mosque".

It warned that extremist propaganda shared on social media and in settler-aligned media outlets now "openly incites the demolition of Al-Aqsa Mosque or the Dome of the Rock to build the alleged Temple", publishing videos and drawings that "depict the construction process".

Some of the footage, the statement added, shows "detailed blueprints for the new temple", reflecting a view among these groups that the project "is a reality under implementation rather than a symbolic or historical idea".

The governorate said these movements "cannot be viewed in isolation from the official support they receive from the Israeli government", citing "direct funding and political cover" from extremist ministers and officials - including Ben Gvir, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, and former Knesset members Moshe Feiglin and Yehuda Glick.

The governorate said the Temple groups’ activities form part of a "comprehensive colonial plan" to change Jerusalem’s religious, political, and legal reality. The statement accused Israel of seeking to "seize endowment lands, confiscate Palestinian homes, plant fake Jewish graves around Al-Aqsa, and Judaize the Arab, Islamic, and Christian character of the city".

It warned that overlooking these developments or treating them as routine "is a grave mistake that could lead to catastrophic consequences affecting security and stability across the entire region".

The statement urged urgent action by Arab and Islamic countries, as well as the wider international community, to pressure Israel to halt its violations and to respect the existing historical and legal status quo at Al-Aqsa Mosque.