Israel advances plan to seize Palestinian property near Al-Aqsa Mosque

“Israel advances plan to seize Palestinian property near Al-Aqsa Mosque Submitted by Samah Watad on Mon, 05/18/2026 - 11:16 New committee to implement historic confiscation orders in Jerusalem’s Old City as Palestinians warn of efforts to ‘Judaise’ the area A large Israeli flag at the Western Wall Plaza, Judaism's holiest prayer site, during the annual Jerusalem Day, in Jerusalem's Old City, 14 May 2026 (Ronen Zvulun/Reuters) Off The Israeli government has advanced plans to confiscate Palestinian-owned property near Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem’s Old City, in a move Palestinians say is aimed at “Judaising” the city. On Sunday, ministers approved the creation of an inter-ministerial team to examine the implementation of historic expropriation orders in the area around Chain Gate (Bab al-Silsila in Arabic), a main route leading directly to Al-Aqsa Mosque. Israeli officials and Hebrew media described the move as part of efforts to strengthen Israeli sovereignty in the Old City and secure routes linking Jaffa Gate, the Jewish Quarter and the Western Wall. According to Israeli reports, officials also presented the decision as completing state ownership over properties confiscated after Israel’s 1967 occupation of East Jerusalem. Government documents repeatedly refer to the “implementation” of historic confiscation orders in the Old City, saying the new committee will examine the legal and planning obstacles that delayed the process for decades. The orders could affect between 15 and 20 Palestinian-owned homes and shops, according to the Jerusalem municipality. The Chain Gate road cuts through one of the most crowded and sensitive areas of the Old City. The narrow stone route leads to the western gates of Al-Aqsa Mosque and is lined with historic Islamic schools, centuries-old buildings from the Mamluk and Ottoman eras, shops and small restaurants, according to Sheikh Ekrima Sabri, imam of Al-Aqsa Mosque. 'Every measure carried out by the occupation serves the project of changing Jerusalem’s identity' - Ekrima Sabri, imam of Al-Aqsa Mosque Sabri said many of the targeted buildings are linked to Islamic waqf properties and historic institutions surrounding the mosque complex. “Every measure carried out by the occupation serves the project of changing Jerusalem’s identity,” he told Middle East Eye, describing the move as “another attempt to Judaise the city”. The decision comes amid growing tensions in occupied East Jerusalem and mounting Palestinian fears of accelerated Israeli measures in the Old City during the genocide in Gaza and wider regional escalation. Palestinian officials and activists say international attention elsewhere has reduced scrutiny of developments in Jerusalem. ‘Reshaping the area’ According to Jerusalem affairs expert Khalil Tawfikji, many of the targeted properties were first confiscated shortly after Israel occupied East Jerusalem in 1967 under laws relating to “public benefit”. He said the legal mechanism, typically used for schools, hospitals and public infrastructure, was instead employed to transfer large parts of the Old City into state ownership. “These properties were confiscated in the name of public benefit, but the public they meant was the Israeli public,” Tawfikji told MEE. “Not the Palestinian, Muslim, or Christian public.” Many Palestinian families in the area were gradually displaced in the decades following the occupation, leaving only a small number of Palestinian residents in parts of the Bab al-Silsila area today. For Tawfikji, the key question is timing. 'Controlling this space means controlling the image of Jerusalem before the world' - Khalil Tawfikji, Jerusalem affairs expert He argues Israel is exploiting the current regional and international climate to consolidate control over one of the Old City’s most strategic areas. The upper floors of some buildings are already occupied by Israeli settlers, he said, while Palestinian-owned shops continue operating below. “This is about reshaping the area,” Tawfikji said. “Whoever controls the Old City controls the narrative presented to the world.” He added that Bab al-Silsila is significant not only because it leads to the Western Wall and Al-Aqsa Mosque, but also because of its proximity to the Christian pilgrimage route known as the Via Dolorosa, or Darb al-Alam in Arabic. “The Old City is where the three religions meet,” he said. “For Christians, there is the Way of Sorrows; for Muslims, Al-Aqsa Mosque; and for Jews, the Western Wall. Controlling this space means controlling the image of Jerusalem before the world.” The government proposal also calls for what it describes as “a continuous urban space”, linking different parts of the Jewish Quarter and routes leading to the Western Wall. Sabri said Islamic officials and Palestinian institutions are trying to block the move through legal and diplomatic channels. He said they are in contact with several parties, including Jordanian officials linked to the Islamic waqf in Jerusalem. “There are political and diplomatic efforts taking place,” Sabri told MEE. But for many Palestinians in Jerusalem, the concern extends beyond the buildings themselves to the continued erosion of the Palestinian presence around Al-Aqsa and within the Old City. The inter-ministerial team is expected to submit recommendations in the coming months on how to implement the historic confiscation orders. 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