What Are the ‘Torah Circles’ Reported at Al-Aqsa Mosque?

Torah study circles on the raised platforms of Al-Aqsa Mosque have emerged as a focus of concern over Israeli settlers’ religious activities during incursions into the compound, particularly around Jewish holidays.

The term refers to gatherings devoted to Torah study. In this context, their significance lies in their location: the mosque’s platforms are being used for organised Jewish religious activity inside the Al-Aqsa compound.

The gatherings are described alongside other rituals, including offerings and Talmudic prayers, as part of a broader range of practices associated with settler incursions. The concern is not simply about the content of the rituals, but about what their performance at the site is intended to establish.

At the heart of the criticism is the view that these circles serve a wider effort to change Al-Aqsa’s identity and assert Israeli sovereignty over it. That is why the gatherings are being presented as more than isolated acts of worship: they are seen as a means of turning a religious presence into a claim of control.