Israel takes control of Hebron’s Ibrahimi Mosque: what this means
The Ibrahimi Mosque aka Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron on 17 June 2026
Sarah Shamim and Reuters report in Al Jazeera on 17 June 2026:
Israel has seized planning and construction powers covering the Ibrahimi Mosque, on the site of a Jewish and Muslim shrine in the occupied West Bank, from Palestinian authorities, scrapping parts of an agreement in place since the 1990s, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said on Tuesday.
In a speech announcing the move, Smotrich said he had “abolished” the parts of the 1997 Hebron Agreement that gave the Palestinian municipal council of Hebron control of planning, zoning and construction in the H2 zone of the West Bank city.
Observers have described the move as “dangerous”. “Hebron for years has been the tensest city in the West Bank,” Chris Doyle, director of the Council for Arab-British Understanding, told Al Jazeera. “Any moves to change the existing arrangements in Hebron in favour of intensifying the Israeli occupation are extremely dangerous.”
We break down why this is so significant.
What is the Ibrahimi Mosque?
All three Abrahamic faiths believe this is where Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and their wives are buried inside the Old City of Hebron. Jews and Christians call it the Tomb – or Cave – of the Patriarchs.
Muslims, like Christians, also revere Abraham. They built the Ibrahimi mosque, also known as the Sanctuary of Abraham, there in the 14th century, expanding on the first-century BC outer walls built by the Roman King Herod.
Hebron and the Ibrahimi Mosque have at times been a flashpoint for violence. In 1994, an American-Israeli Jewish settler killed 29 Muslims praying at the shrine and wounded 125 others.
What has Israel announced?
Smotrich, a far-right minister, said he had approved the transfer of planning and construction powers for the religious site and nearby Jewish settlers to Israeli authorities late on Monday.
In a speech marking the establishment of a new Israeli settlement near Hebron in the southern West Bank, Smotrich said the “historic step” would deepen “Israeli sovereignty” in the West Bank, which Palestinians see as the heart of a future independent state.