Jewish worshipers pray at the Western Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem, June 13, 2022. Photo by Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images

By Louis Keene August 12, 2024

Was it a historical metaphor, a comment on current affairs, or just a strange coincidence? 

The day before Tisha B’av, the day on which the Jewish people mourn the destruction of Jerusalem, a piece of ancient Jerusalem stone roughly the size of a brick fell onto the prayer area in front of the Western Wall during prayer services.

With Jews around the world already on edge and preparing to observe the first Tisha B’Av since Oct. 7, the fallen stone could be read as ominous — or fortunate, as no one was injured in the incident. 

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

But Jews, and Israelis in particular, have been bracing for another stone to drop — a looming attack vowed by Iran and Hamas in retribution for the July 31 assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the terrorist group’s leader, in Tehran. (Israel has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility for the assassination.)

Widely considered the holiest site in Judaism, the Western Wall is believed to be the last remaining outer wall of the Second Holy Temple in Jerusalem, and dates to Herod’s refurbishing of the Temple complex around 20 B.C.E. Today, prayer services are held there throughout the day, and early-morning prayer services were being held when the stone fell from the Machkameh Wall, which abuts the Western Wall to the south.

According to the Western Wall Heritage Foundation, the Makhkameh wall was built around 700 years ago by the Mamluks. Engineers who visited the site said the wall was not a structural risk.

In addition to the destruction of both Temples, Tisha B’Av commemorates a number of ancient Jewish tragedies, including the crushing of the Bar Kokhba revolt and the Biblical testimony of the 12 spies.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. We’ve started our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we need 1,800 readers like you to step up to support the Forward by April 21. Members of the Forward board are even matching the first 1,000 gifts, up to $70,000.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism, because every dollar goes twice as far.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

2X match on all Passover gifts!

$90 → $180 $180 → $360

$360 → $720

Other amount