Muslim worshippers hold Friday prayers in Al-Aqsa compound

Israeli soldiers look on as Palestinian women approach a checkpoint, which they must pass to reach the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem to attend the second Friday prayers of Ramadan on Feb. 27, 2026. (AFP)
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Updated 27 February 2026
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Muslim worshippers hold Friday prayers in Al-Aqsa compound

QALANDIA, West Bank: Muslim worshippers held the second Friday prayers during the holy month of Ramadan at Al-Aqsa compound under heavy Israeli security.

Palestinians from the West Bank earlier arrived at Israeli checkpoints to cross into Jerusalem.

Tens of thousands of Muslims gathered last week under heavy security at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem for the first Ramadan Friday prayers, among them Palestinians who crossed into Israel from the West Bank.

But Israel restricted the number of Palestinians allowed to enter Israel from the West Bank to 10,000 on Friday, and only allowed men over 55 and women over 50 as well as children up to 12. It has imposed similar restrictions in the past due to security concerns.

The prayers at Al-Aqsa took place for the first time since a shaky ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas went into effect in October.

It was the first opportunity many had to leave the West Bank and pray at the site in Jerusalem’s Old City since Ramadan last year.


Iran’s new supreme leader ‘safe and sound’ despite war injury reports: president’s son

Updated 37 min 51 sec ago
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Iran’s new supreme leader ‘safe and sound’ despite war injury reports: president’s son

TEHRAN: Iran's new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei is "safe and sound" despite reports of an injury during the war with Israel and the United States, said the son of the Iranian president on Wednesday.
"I heard news that Mr Mojtaba Khamenei had been injured. I have asked some friends who had connections. They told me that, thank God, he is safe and sound," said Yousef Pezeshkian, who is also a government adviser, in a post on his Telegram channel.
State television had called Khamenei a "wounded veteran of the Ramadan war" but never specified his injury.
The new supreme leader is the son and successor of the Islamic republic's longtime ruler Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28 which triggered a war across the Middle East.
The 56-year-old Mojtaba Khamenei, a discreet figure who has rarely appeared in public or spoken at official events, has yet to address the nation or issue a written statement since he was declared supreme leader on Sunday.
In a Wednesday report, the New York Times quoting three unnamed Iranian officials said that Khamenei "had suffered injuries, including to his legs, but that he was alert and sheltering at a highly secure location with limited communication".