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Israeli government bans Jews from Temple Mount through end of Ramadan
(JTA) — Israel’s government has banned the entry of Jews to Jerusalem’s Temple Mount through the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan later this month, a decision prompted by heightened Israeli-Palestinian tensions.
In past years, the mount has been the site of clashes during Ramadan between Israeli security forces and Muslim worshippers. Such clashes took place at the site last week when Israeli forces who were evacuating Muslim worshippers from the Al-Aqsa Mosque overnight were filmed beating them with clubs. The Israel Police are investigating the incident.
Tuesday’s decision also follows a spate of violence in recent days, during Passover, that has included Palestinian terror attacks on Israelis, missiles fired on Israel from militant groups and Israeli military raids in Palestinian areas of the West Bank.
The mount, Judaism’s holiest site, is revered by Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary. Under current regulations meant to prevent unrest, Muslims may pray on the mount and Jews and others may visit at limited times but may not pray publicly.
A “unanimous recommendation” from the Israel Defense Forces, Defense Ministry, Shin Bet and Israel Police “decided to prohibit Jewish visitors and tourists from going up to the Temple Mount until the end of Ramadan,” according to a statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office. Eid al-Fitr, the celebration marking the end of the Muslim month of fasting and worship, ends April 23.
Notably absent from that recommendation was the national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, who the statement nonetheless said was present at the meeting. Ben-Gvir is a far-right politician who is a prominent figure in the movement to expand Jewish prayer at the Temple Mount. In January, he staged a walkthrough of the site soon after the new government, and his cabinet position, was in place.
Relations between Israelis and Palestinians have been tense since a series of Palestinian stabbing attacks on Israelis last year was followed by dozens of deadly Israeli army raids into Palestinian population centers. That tension has risen since Netanyahu again assumed leadership of the country. More than a dozen Israelis, and dozens of Palestinians, have been killed in ongoing violence in recent months.
Violence at the Temple Mount has, in the past, rippled out to the broader Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In 2021, clashes at the site led to unrest across Israel and preceded an 11-day conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
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The post Israeli government bans Jews from Temple Mount through end of Ramadan appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Board of Peace Members Have Pledged More Than $5 billion for Gaza, Trump Says
A drone view shows the destruction in a residential neighborhood, after the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the area, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, in Gaza City, October 21, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas/File Photo
US President Donald Trump said Board of Peace member states will announce at an upcoming meeting on Thursday a pledge of more than $5 billion for reconstruction and humanitarian efforts in Gaza.
In a post on Truth Social on Sunday, Trump wrote that member states have also committed thousands of personnel toward a U.N.-authorized stabilization force and local police in the Palestinian enclave.
The US president said Thursday’s gathering, the first official meeting of the group, will take place at the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace, which the State Department recently renamed after the president. Delegations from more than 20 countries, including heads of state, are expected to attend.
The board’s creation was endorsed by a United Nations Security Council resolution as part of the Trump administration’s plan to end the war between Israel and Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in Gaza.
Israel and Hamas agreed to the plan last year with a ceasefire officially taking effect in October, although both sides have accused each other repeatedly of violating the ceasefire. According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, more than 590 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli troops in the territory since the ceasefire began. Israel has said four of its soldiers have been killed by Palestinian militants in the same period.
While regional Middle East powers including Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Israel – as well as emerging nations such as Indonesia – have joined the board, global powers and traditional Western US allies have been more cautious.
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Turkey Sends Drilling Ship to Somalia in Major Push for Energy Independence
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a ceremony for the handover of new vehicles to the gendarmerie and police forces in Istanbul, Turkey, Nov. 28, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Murad Sezer
i24 News – Turkey has dispatched a drilling vessel to Somalia to begin offshore oil exploration, marking what officials describe as a historic step in Ankara’s drive to strengthen energy security and reduce reliance on imports.
Turkish Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar announced that the drilling ship Çagri Bey is set to sail from the port of Taşucu in southern Turkey, heading toward Somali territorial waters.
The vessel will pass through the Strait of Gibraltar and around the coast of southern Africa before reaching its destination, with drilling operations expected to begin in April or May.
Bayraktar described the mission as a “historic” milestone, saying it reflects Turkey’s long-term strategy to enhance national energy security and move closer to self-sufficiency.
The operation will be protected by the Turkish Naval Forces, which will deploy several naval units to secure both the vessel’s route and the drilling area in the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea. The security arrangements fall under existing cooperation agreements between Ankara and Somalia.
The move aligns with a broader vision promoted by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, aimed at reducing Turkey’s dependence on foreign energy supplies, boosting domestic production, and shielding the economy from external pressures.
Bayraktar said Turkey is also working to double its natural gas output in the Black Sea this year, while continuing offshore exploration along its northern coastline. In parallel, Ankara is preparing to bring its first nuclear reactor online at the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant, which is expected to begin generating electricity soon and eventually supply about 10% of the country’s energy needs.
The current drilling effort is based on survey data collected last year and forms part of Ankara’s wider plan to expand its energy exploration activities both regionally and internationally.
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Syria Expected to Form a New Government, Appoint a PM with US Support
Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa speaks during a Ministerial formation of the government of the Syrian Arab Republic, in Damascus, Syria, March 29, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi
i24 News – Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa is expected to launch in the coming weeks a workshop to form a new, inclusive Syrian government with expanded powers, a Syrian source close to President al-Sharaa tells i24NEWS. This government will include figures from across the spectrum of Syrian society in a bid to address the concerns of minority groups. Those chosen will be individuals who enjoy both local and international legitimacy.
i24NEWS has learned that a prominent candidate considered for the post of prime minister is veteran Syrian politician Fahad al-Masri, chairman of the Syrian Liberal Party. A US official says that the Trump administration “appreciates al-Masri’s support for Washington’s positions regarding Syria and the region, and that Syria would be well-served with him in an influential role.”
The Syrian source tells me that the new Syrian government will adopt “a phased plan to merge several ministries to achieve greater integration and efficiency.”
According to the US official, the workshop to form a new government is among several ideas that have been floated and discussed in order to reach a more permanent, non-transitional government.
The official said that US Ambassador to Turkey and Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack’s decision to drop support for the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) is partly because he believes Syria’s Kurds must be part of the government in Damascus in order to grant it greater legitimacy.
“Making known that the SDF’s mandate has expired from Washington’s point of view is an avenue to encouraging the Kurds to integrate and speed up the process of forming that broad, inclusive government,” the US official said.
i24NEWS reached out to Fahad al-Masri to ask about his readiness to assume the role of prime minister in the upcoming Syrian government. Al-Masri declined to confirm or deny his nomination but stressed that “the priority must remain the stability and unity of Syria rather than individual roles.”
Al-Masri expressed his deep appreciation for President Trump and the US administration’s stance on Syria, describing it as “principled and strategically significant.” Al-Masri underscored his confidence in President al-Sharaa’s leadership during this pivotal period, affirming that the success of the transitional phase is vital for national interest and regional stability.