Jerusalem and Isolation Policies: Between Imposing Rituals and Dismantling the Status Quo

Israel is accelerating its reshaping of Jerusalem’s reality through an integrated urban-security approach, targeting Al-Aqsa Mosque as the center of transformation. In recent times, Jerusalem has witnessed a marked escalation in Israeli policies aimed at reshaping its geographical and religious landscape. Public provocations are being carried out within the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, in cooperation with the Israeli police. These provocations express a systematic vision that seeks to alter the Islamic character of the place and gradually impose a new reality that facilitates temporal and spatial division.

Urban planning plays a primary role in policies of control over religious space. The E1 project constitutes one of the most dangerous tools of geographical isolation, as it seeks to connect the” Ma’ale Adumim” settlement to East Jerusalem by building a settlement in the buffer zone between them. This effectively encircles the city, isolating it from its natural extension in the West Bank, and alters the demographic balance in Jerusalem in favor of the Israelis. This geographic isolation is not limited to demographic and urban influences, but extends to the religious-political dimension of the place, whereby Al-Aqsa Mosque is transformed into a space completely surrounded by a settlement-security reality, facilitating the control of entry and exit and the imposition of de facto policies that serve the “Greater Jerusalem” project.

The Field Inside Al-Aqsa

Over time, these patterns lead to a redefinition of the status quo through the accumulation of recurring practices. Intruders deliberately prolong their incursions through evasive methods that lead to change, effectively establishing a deliberate temporal division. In parallel, biblical rituals are introduced into the mosque’s courtyards and implemented, along with practices such as bringing offerings and blowing the shofar. With continued repetition, the exception becomes the rule, and the administration of the place is effectively reshaped outside the framework of the “status quo.”

At the official level, statements have shifted from insinuations to explicit references. At a public conference in Jerusalem, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich addressed the mayor of Jerusalem, saying, “I will give you money, and you will build the Temple.” This statement, even if presented in jest, reflects a symbolic normalization of the idea of institutional preparation for the construction of the alleged Temple.

These practices are accompanied by a deliberate undermining of the authority of the mosque’s guards and Waqf employees, weakening the Waqf’s official and legitimate role in managing the mosque’s affairs. The repeated interventions by settlers and Israeli forces, along with the accompanying overreach of the guards’ powers and the imposition of new realities on the ground, constitute a gradual process toward emptying the religious authority of its substance and transforming it into a symbolic, ineffective presence. These practices cannot be viewed as transient violations, but rather as part of a policy aimed at undermining the role of employees within Al-Aqsa Mosque, in favor of consolidating the occupation’s control over it and diminishing any effective Jordanian-Palestinian role in protecting it and preserving its status quo.

The Ibrahimi Mosque as a Microcosm

The current trajectory of Al-Aqsa can be understood through the experience of the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, which ended in division. The process began under the pretext of security and then moved to curtailing the powers of the Waqf and its guards. The timing of raids was expanded, entry and exit routes were regulated, and symbolic Jewish rituals such as the blowing of the shofar, tefillin, and the offering of the korban (ritual offering) were introduced. These “temporary measures” repeatedly became established rules, ultimately leading to a codified temporal/spatial division, as occurred at the Ibrahimi Mosque.

This undermines the status quo arrangements. Article (9) of the Peace Treaty recognizes Jordan’s special role in the care of the Islamic holy sites in Jerusalem, and the Amman-Ramallah Agreement (2013) renews the Hashemite custodianship and the authority of the Waqf to manage and maintain them. When these repeated measures result in a functional change in administration, they undermine the essence of this role and weaken the administrative framework upon which the “status quo” is built. Therefore, it is imperative to characterize these developments as a deviation from the stated obligations, not merely a difference in practical implementation. Accordingly, these transformations are not merely “security measures,” but rather an infringement on the identity of the place and its administrative system.

Economic and Administrative Policies: Fragmenting the Jerusalem Landscape

Economic and administrative policies are being used as tools of fragmentation within the “re-engineering” process. This pushes many to build without permits, which subsequently exposes them to demolition and fines. In addition, the occupation authorities impose multiple taxes, such as the property tax (arnona), income tax, value-added tax, and national insurance fees. Collection has become a means of reshaping the geographical space and demographic behavior.

The economic pressure begins at the gate of urbanization: building permits become a burdensome obstacle, costing approximately 80% of the construction value itself. This discourages Palestinians from building and expanding, making any attempt to renovate or expand their homes costly. When some resort to building without permits to avoid this burden, they face subsequent demolition and arbitrarily imposed fines, gradually closing off the space for Palestinian expansion within the city.

Training is also evident in the distribution of resources, data indicates that 39% of Jerusalem’s residents are Palestinian, but only 10% of the municipal budget is allocated to them. This impacts services and visual infrastructure, deepens well-being and welfare, and reinforces social fragmentation. On a practical level, the residency system entrenches precariousness. Since 1967, Since 1967, tens of thousands of Palestinian residency permits have been revoked for several months in the city, and residency permits, including those for religious services, have been revoked, including by the authorities, “solely for loyalty.” This makes residency rights fragile and easily revoked, opening the door to arbitrary departure at the discretion of the authorities. These political policies and strategies serve as a tool of political and economic pressure to achieve a demographic solution for the Jewish community in Jerusalem. A previous report published in May and June documented 51 cases of self-demolition and forced demolition, in addition to 300 decisions taken, including 11 cases of expulsion from Al-Aqsa Mosque and one case of revocation of a Jerusalemite’s identity.

Conclusion

Taken together, the data indicate that Israeli policies in Jerusalem do not operate on separate tracks but within an integrated framework that combines urban planning, security, religion, and the economy. The result is a gradual dismantling of the Palestinian fabric through tools that appear administrative or financial on the surface but, in practice, lay the foundation for a policy of soft displacement, where Jerusalemites are burdened with the costs of residency, construction, and taxes to the point of being pushed to leave. With the continued accumulation of these measures, the “status quo” becomes closer to a new de facto reality, one that reshapes Jerusalem demographically, religiously, and politically, paving the way for the entrenchment of the “Greater Jerusalem” project.