At Jerusalem’s al-Aqsa Mosque, Ramadan brings uncertainty and fear

JERUSALEM — Just days before the start of Ramadan — the busiest and often most volatile month in Jerusalem’s Old City — the offices of al-Aqsa Mosque were bustling with preparations and uncertainty.

Even in quieter years, al-Aqsa is a Ramadan tinderbox. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians come to worship at this mosque that has sat for more than a millennium on a site that both Muslims and Jews claim as sacred ground. It’s administered by Jordan, but access is controlled by Israeli security.