Tag Archive for Kotel

| July 11, 2016
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Planned UNESCO vote to repudiate Jewish connection with Western Wall

 

A joint Jordanian-Palestinian draft accusing Israel of misconduct on the Temple Mount including deliberate vandalism, will also deny Jewish affinity to the mount and the Western Wall, will be voted on during the annual UNESCO meeting.

By Itamar Eichner

 

The subject of the Jewish connection with the Temple Mount has once again been returned to the UN as Palestinians and Jordanians seek to repudiate Jewish affinity with any part of the compound.

Photo: AP

The draft decision presented by the Palestinians and Jordanians includes a number of problematic points in relation to Israel. Firstly, the draft calls on Israel to return the Temple Mount and the al-Aqsa mosque to “the historic status quo,” a new phrase implying that the sites should be returned to their pre-1967 status.The Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , , , , ,
| June 4, 2016
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A history of the disappearing Western Wall & its slow reapearence

The Western Wall plaza was cleared after the liberation of Jerusalem almost 50 years ago, allowing the Jewish people to view their sacred site freely. But still, much of the Wall is hidden under Arab houses. “Those houses were built up against the Western Wall a few hundred years ago with the express intention of hiding it… Sewage drains empty directly onto the stones of the Western Wall. What other people would allow such a thing?” remarked PM Menachem Begin.

The secret of the disappearing Wall

 

On June 8, 1967, while IDF paratroopers were clearing out the last pockets of resistance in the alleys of the Old City, Israel’s first Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, came to the Western Wall passageway, accompanied by Jerusalem Mayor Teddy Kollek and head of the Israel Nature and Parks Authority Yaakov Yanai. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: ,
| May 12, 2016
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French PM condemns UNESCO resolution on Jerusalem as ‘unfortunate, clumsy’

 

PM Manuel Valls contradicts UNESCO’s resolution saying, “I want to repeat once again and clearly, with conviction – France will never deny the Jewish presence & Jewish history in Jerusalem. It would make no sense, it is absurd to deny this history.”

By AFP

 

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls on Wednesday described a UNESCO resolution on the flashpoint al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem as “clumsy” and “unfortunate” and said it should have been avoided.

Jewish men & women pray at the Kotel (Western Wall) – circa 1900

The Paris-based UN cultural body adopted the resolution on “Occupied Palestine” presented by several Arab countries in mid-April.  Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , , , , , ,
| April 17, 2016
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Lapid: UNESCO Temple Mount decision to erase Jewish connection will cause bloodshed

 

Israel’s former Finance Minister Yair Lapid wrote to UNESCO chairman Irina Bokova that the decision to ignore the Jewish people’s historic connection to the Western Wall & Temple Mount will lead to much more bloodshed.

By Arutz Sheva Staff

 

Yesh Atid chairman and former Finance Minister Yair Lapid wrote a scathing letter to UNESCO over the weekend, stating to chairman Irina Bokova that a decision to divorce the Jewish people from the Western Wall and Temple Mount will lead to bloodshed.

Jews gather to pray at the Western Wall during Succot. – Photo by AFP

“This decision is a shameful attempt to rewrite history, rewrite reality as part of the ongoing political campaign against Israel and the Jewish people,” Lapid stated in the letter.  Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , , , , , ,
| April 5, 2016
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Israel’s Archeological council warns Western Wall mixed-prayer area will cause damage  

 

The ire of Israel’s Archeological Council was voiced in a letter warning of great damage to Western Wall heritage site, should the decision to expand the prayer area for Conservative, Reform & mixed-gender prayer be allowed at the planned designated area.

By Itay Blumenthal

 

Israel’s Archeological Council announced, in a letter that it sent on Monday to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, that it greatly opposes what it called “the major damage to the archeological park at the foot of the Western Wall”, the place where the government decided last January to establish an expanded prayer area for Conservative, Reform and mixed-gender worship. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , , , ,
| February 1, 2016
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Historic victory for non-Orthodox praying Jews at Western Wall

 

Natan Sharansky, the Jewish Agency chairman, hailed the cabinet’s decision to approve a non-Orthodox prayer section at the Kotel (Western Wall) as an “unprecedented” decision for Israel and world Jewry.

By JEREMY SHARON,  STEVE LINDE

 

The Women of the Wall organization, the Reform and Conservative movements in Israel and North America as well as political leaders in Israel and the Diaspora hailed the agreement approved on Sunday to formally designate a prayer area for non-Orthodox prayer at the Western Wall.

IDF’s Nachal brigade ‘swearing-in’ ceremony at the Kotel – Photo: IsraelandStuff/PP

The Orthodox political establishment, in particular the haredi leadership, was, however, greatly angered by the recognition of the rights of non-Orthodox Jews inherent in the change, although they realized they were essentially powerless to avert it. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , , , , ,
| October 25, 2015
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Morgan Freeman Visits Judaism’s Western Wall

 

Morgan Freeman did some soul searching at the Kotel while in Israel filming for National Geographic’s upcoming series “The Story of God,” which investigates mankind’s quest to understand the divine.

By JPOST.COM STAFF, REUTERS

 

Hollywood heavyweight Morgan Freeman took time out to visit the Western Wall on Sunday, while visiting the Holy Land to shoot scenes for the upcoming National Geographic series The Story of God, which looks at mankind’s quest to understand the divine.

Morgan Freeman and Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz at the Western Wall. – Photo: RAVHAKOTEL

While at the Western Wall, Freeman met with the rabbi of the Western Wall, Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, and visited several holy sites. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , , , ,
| October 21, 2015
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UNESCO Chief Slams Palestinian Attempt to Hijack Jewish Holy Site as Muslim

 

UNESCO Director-General issues formal statement ‘deploring’ Palestinian initiative proposed by Arab states, to claim Judaism’s Kotel as part of Al-Aqsa compound saying it “undermines UNESCO’s mandate and efforts.”

By Ari Soffer

 

 

In what could be a crucial development, the head of UNESCO (United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization) has issued a statement roundly condemning the Palestinian Authority bid to claim the Kotel (Western Wall) as a Muslim site.

Jews worship at the Kotel (Western Wall) – Reuters

In a statement issued Tuesday afternoon, UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova urged Organization members to reject the proposal, which she said threatened to “incite tensions.” Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , , , ,
| October 17, 2015
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Palestinians Claim Ownership of Judaism’s ‘Western Wall’ at UNESCO

 

The proposal, likely to pass due to Muslim majority in the UNESCO Executive Council, will have Judaism’s Kotel (a.k.a. Western Wall or Wailing Wall in English) renamed Buraq Plaza, and incorporated as part of Islam’s Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.

By Ari Yashar

 

In an attempt to gain international legitimacy for its rewriting of history, the Palestinian Authority (PA) will submit a resolution to UNESCO (UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) next week claiming the Kotel (Western Wall) as its own.

The proposal calls to have the Kotel in Jerusalem – which is an outer wall of the Temple Mount that is the holiest site in Judaism – recognized as part of Al-Aqsa Mosque located on the Mount, reports Yedioth Aharonoth on Friday. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , , , ,
| July 31, 2014
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Police shoot suspicious woman who failed to heed warnings to stop at Western Wall

A 35yr-old Jewish woman was taken to hospital with light injuries for failing to heed warning shot from Israel police.

By DANIEL K. EISENBUD, JPOST.COM STAFF

 

A 35-year-old woman draped in blankets, who repeatedly refused to identify herself to Western Wall security guards as she continued walking toward a checkpoint, was shot in the leg on Wednesday night when she refused to stop after a warning shot was fired.

Security cameras at the Western Wall (Kotel)

At approximately 8:30 p.m., security guards became suspicious of the unidentified Jewish woman as she approached them, and asked her to stop and identify herself, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , ,
| April 23, 2014
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Metal Chisel Thought To Build The 2nd Temple Unearthed Under Western Wall

Archaeologist who discovered the ancient metal chisel says ‘For 1st time in 2000 years we have a tool of the builders of the Kotel (Western Wall).’

By Iddo Ben-Porat, Ari Yashar

 

An astonishing archaeological discovery has been made at the feet of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. The find is an ancient chisel, which apparently was used by the builders of the Western Wall of the Second Temple.

Chisel found on Temple Mount – Photo: Clara Amit, Courtesy of Antiquities Authority

Archaeologist Eli Shukrun, who managed the excavations and found the rare tool, told Arutz Sheva that the chisel is “a moving discovery.” Continue Reading »

Category: Innovations & Discoveries, Jewish News | Tags: , , ,
| April 1, 2014
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Jerusalem Court to hear petition to block private control of Western Wall section

 

The prosecution contends that transferring control of the Holy site to a subcontractor will limit the gov’t’s freedom to act in the area.

By

 

The Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court is to hold a hearing on Tuesday on the attorney general’s request to cancel an agreement for the settler organization Elad-the City of David Foundation to manage the entire southern section of the Western Wall.

Israel Police Special Patrol Unit vehicles stationed near the Western Wall compound.

Israel Police Special Patrol Unit vehicles stationed near the Western Wall compound. February 25, 2014. – Photo: Olivier Fitoussi

The agreement between the Company for the Reconstruction and Development of the Jewish Quarter in the Old City of Jerusalem (JQDC), which owns the area, and the right-wing, religious group was meant to go into effect on Tuesday.

Continue Reading »
Category: Israel News | Tags: , , , ,
| March 11, 2014
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Postponing the apocalypse on the Temple Mount

Jerusalem’s holiest site is once again triggering a crises between Jews & Muslims and between Israel’s neighbors. – The Temple Mount cannot remain hostage to the extremists.

By Khaled Diab

 

The Dome of the Rock dominates the Jerusalem skyline with majestic splendor. To the untrained eye, this architectural gem, floating resplendently above the old city’s cacophony, seems like a sanctuary of peace and tranquility, a retreat for meditation and introspection.

Israeli flags fly in front of the Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mount, Feb 25, 2014.

Israeli flags fly in front of the Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mount, Feb 25, 2014. – Photo: Olivier Fitoussi

But the Noble Sanctuary, as it is known to Muslims, or Temple Mount, as Jews refer to it, has been anything but peaceful and has been the symbolic heart of the Arab-Israeli conflict’s religious fault line for much of the past century.

Continue Reading »
Category: Israel News | Tags: , ,
| March 10, 2014
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Palestinians Complain to UN Over Jewish Presence on Temple Mount

 

Palestinian Authority reports to the UN that increased Jewish visits & Knesset debates over Temple Mount sovereignty are ‘provocative’

By Israel Today Staff

 

The Palestinian Authority’s mission to the United Nations last week filed an official complaint over a growing Jewish presence on and claims to Jerusalem’s Temple Mount.

Temple Mount - Photo: IsraelandStuff/PP

Temple Mount – Photo: IsraelandStuff/PP

Riyad Mansour, the PA’s observer at the UN, said that regular visits to the Temple Mount by Jewish worshippers and Israeli officials were “provocative” and could further enrage the entire Muslim Arab world.

 

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Mansour took special exception to the Israeli Knesset’s recent discussions about fully extending Israeli sovereignty over the Temple Mount, which is Judaism’s holiest site. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , , ,
| February 20, 2014
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‘Jews Don’t Need Permission to Pray at the Kotel (Western Wall)’

 

Israel’s deputy FM Danny Danon, furious after Mahmoud Abbas deigns to grant Jews his permission to pray at Judaism’s holiest site.

By Israel Today Staff

 

Israel’s deputy foreign minister, Danny Danon, insisted earlier this week that Jews require permission from no one to pray at Jerusalem’s Western Wall, the retaining wall of the Temple Mount that for centuries has been Judaism’s holiest site.

Praying freely at the Kotel (Western Wall, Wailing Wall) – IsraelandStuff/PP

At a meeting with Israeli students in Ramallah on Sunday, Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas insisted the Palestinians must win control of the eastern half of Jerusalem in order to make peace, but promised to still allow Jews to enter the Old City and pray at the Western Wall. Continue Reading »

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