Netanyahu and Thousands of Settlers Visit Western Wall Amid Tightened Security in Jerusalem

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, accompanied by several cabinet ministers and thousands of settlers, visited the Western Wall plaza in the Old City of East Jerusalem on Saturday evening, ahead of the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur. The visit took place under heavy security. The Palestinian Governorate of Jerusalem stated that Israeli forces had transformed the Old City into a "military barracks" to protect settlers as they moved toward the Western Wall. According to the governorate, settler groups had also called for gatherings to perform religious rituals near the Gate of Mercy. In response, Palestinian authorities called for a presence at the Al-Aqsa Mosque to counter these activities. Concurrently, the Palestinian Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission reported that settlers carried out at least 14 attacks across four West Bank provinces on Saturday. These incidents included the theft of 300 sheep, the cutting of water supply lines, gunfire at Palestinian homes, and damage to an ambulance. According to the commission's data, 628 attacks by settlers were recorded in the West Bank and East Jerusalem during the month of August.