Israel attempting to ‘erase’ Palestinian Muslim identity, report warns
Palestinians pray outside the Damascus Gate during the last Friday prayers of Ramadan in occupied East Jerusalem on 13 March 2026
Simon Hooper reports in Middle East Eye on 13 March 2026:
Israel is waging a systematic campaign of violence, destruction and persecution that threatens to erase the religious and cultural identities of Palestinian Muslims, according to a report published on Friday [13 March].
The report, by the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP), a UK-based legal advocacy campaign group, found that Palestinian Muslims throughout the occupied territories and Israel had faced escalating anti-Muslim discrimination since October 2023, following the Hamas-led attacks in southern Israel and the launch of Israel’s assault on Gaza.
It said Muslims had been subjected to increased persecution during the current holy month of Ramadan, citing an attack in February by settlers on a mosque in Nablus, punitive measures restricting access to Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque complex, and the detention by Israeli security forces of more than 100 Palestinians during the first week of the month.
In Israel, rights of religious freedom were under threat from legislation brought by National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir which aimed to ban the call to prayer, as well as amendments to counter-terrorism laws which had led to Palestinians being accused of supporting Hamas for quoting verses from the Quran in social media posts, the report said.
It echoed calls by United Nations bodies and human rights organisations for Israel to immediately end attacks on cultural and religious sites and to respect the religious rights of Palestinians, citing the advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice last year which called on Israel to immediately end its illegal occupation of Palestinian territories including East Jerusalem and the West Bank.
“The clampdown on religious freedom of expression contributes to the erasure of Palestinian Muslim identity and religious customs, extending apartheid practices into every facet of Palestinian Muslim life,” the report said.
It accused Israeli forces of targeting mosques and religious sites in Gaza as a “core objective of Israel’s genocide … and part of a concerted Israeli campaign to obliterate Palestinian life in the enclave”.