An annual state-sponsored march through Jerusalem, marking the anniversary of the city’s capture and annexation, witnessed Israeli nationalists chanting provocative and extreme slogans, highlighting a growing assertion of Jewish control over Palestinian East Jerusalem. The event, which has become increasingly extreme in recent years, saw participants shout “death to the Arabs”, “may your villages burn”, and “Gaza is a graveyard”.

The march culminated in a highly symbolic act by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who unfurled an Israeli flag in front of the al-Aqsa mosque, Islam's third holiest site, known to Jews as the Temple Mount. Ben-Gvir, who later posted on social media claiming, “We have returned governance to the Temple Mount,” has been leading a campaign to erode the 59-year status quo, which forbids non-Muslims from praying in the sacred area since Israel’s capture of East Jerusalem and the West Bank in 1967. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich also participated in the march, which was funded by the Jerusalem municipality and various government ministries, with participants bused in from across Israel and from settlements in the occupied West Bank.

In the Old City’s Muslim quarter, most Palestinian shops were shuttered, and residents had gone home before the march began. However, far-right radical Jewish groups scuffled with remaining Palestinian residents, throwing chairs at each other until police intervened. A 19-year-old marcher, Ariel Amichai, articulated the march's message to Palestinians as a demand to “leave” Jerusalem, stating, “This is our country. And they can’t just be here and try to stab us or kill us.”

Amidst the tension, a Jewish group called Standing Together formed a counter-protest, deploying a record 400 volunteers in hi-vis vests to protect Palestinian residents from political violence. Suf Patishi, an organiser for Standing Together, emphasized the risks involved but highlighted the greater danger faced by Palestinians living in the city. Some religious Jews joined the protective cordon, including an ultra-orthodox man named David, who expressed his dismay, stating, “I’ve become appalled by the violent behaviour of people in my community... This is a desecration of God’s name.”