Tommy Robinson 'poses as Muslim' to enter Al-Aqsa Mosque

Far-right anti-Islam figure Tommy Robinson attempted to gain entry to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, Islam’s third holiest site located in occupied East Jerusalem, by implying that he was a convert to Islam, a new video has shown.

Robinson, real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, was accompanied by the Australian-Israeli activist Avi Yemeni, a former Israeli soldier, along with Turkish ex-Muslim anti-Islam YouTuber Ridvan Aydemir.

The trip formed part of a wider tour of Israel and Jerusalem, undertaken after Robinson was invited to the country by Israel’s diaspora minister, Amichai Chikli.

Footage shows Robinson first outside the mosque compound being briefed about the Al-Aqsa Mosque by the far-right American-Israeli activist Yehudah Glick. Glick, a former Member of the Knesset, campaigns to overturn Palestinian control of the Al-Aqsa Mosque and increase Jewish-Israeli control over the site.

Robinson and his entourage then make their way into the Al-Aqsa compound, with the convicted football hooligan attempting to enter the mosque before being gently stopped by a Palestinian guard.

"Is there a reason we can't look?" Robinson asks the guard, who explains in broken English that it's not for people to look in.

"What about as a Muslim?" Robinson then asks.

"You are a Muslim?" the guard replies, to which Robinson nods his head and says "yes."

"How can I know if you're a Muslim?" the guard asks suspiciously. After Robinson shrugs his shoulders and says "How can you know?", the guard asks him to recite some of the Qur'an, specifically the Al-Fatiha opening prayer.

After Robinson admits he can't, Aydemir, a former Muslim, steps in and recites the verse in Arabic.

The guard then lets Aydemir in but stops Robinson from entering, despite Robinson's protests that Aydemir is "his teacher".

After this, another guard steps in and tells them explicitly that the mosque is "only for Muslims" and asks them to stop filming. Robinson continues trying to provoke the guards, asking, "Is there a place that's only for Christians?"

The guard at one point puts his arm around Robinson and explains that it's for political reasons that entry to the mosque is prohibited to non-Muslims.

Robinson and his allies have used the incident to claim that the convicted criminal was "banned" from Al-Aqsa, despite the rule applying to all non-Muslims.

Entry to the mosque itself is restricted under Islamic Waqf administration, while the wider compound - known to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif and to Jews as the Temple Mount - remains under Israeli occupation and frequent tension due to illegal infiltrations by extremist Israelis. 

Reacting to the video on Instagram, a Muslim user called Majada786 wrote: "This really made my blood boil seeing Tommy ... trying to get in. Respect to the brothers for standing their ground. Alhamdulillah."

Another wrote, "It's a place for prayer for Muslims. Not a tourist attraction."

The stunt took place during Robinson’s wider tour of Israel, in which he met with far-right figures, praised Israel’s military actions in Gaza, and made a series of anti-Arab and anti-Muslim remarks.

His visit to Israel was widely ridiculed across social media, including by some Israelis, who accused him of exploiting their country for propaganda, while it also prompted backlash from British Muslims and Jews alike.