This is the Forward’s coverage of the Western Wall, also called the Kotel, a Jewish holy site in Jerusalem adjacent to the Temple Mount.
Western Wall
The Latest
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Fast Forward Women of Wall Push for Bat Mitzvahs at Western Wall
Women of the Wall launched an ad campaign on public buses in Jerusalem to promote bat mitzvah ceremonies for girls at the Western Wall. The ads unveiled on Sunday evening feature Israeli girls ages 11 to 14 wearing a prayer shawl and holding a Torah scroll in front of the Western Wall. The ad reads…
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Fast Forward 80,000 Visit Western Wall for Sukkot Prayers
The Temple Mount was closed to non-Muslim visitors as about 80,000 Jewish worshippers visited the Western Wall for Sukkot holiday prayers. Police clamped down on security in the Old City of Jerusalem on Sunday, adding extra patrols and closing the major streets around the area to traffic. Israel Police on Friday restricted entry of Muslim…
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Fast Forward Western Wall Cleared of Notes for Rosh Hashanah
Workers at the Western Wall emptied the holy site of layers of notes from its cracks and crevices for the New Year. The notes were removed Wednesday morning under the supervision of the rabbi of the Western Wall, Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovich. The notes will be buried in the Mount of Olives cemetery in Jerusalem. Visitors…
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News Was Herod Ripped Off by Western Wall Builders?
(Haaretz) — Some of the stones of the Western Wall are of lesser quality than others, according to new research, and may indicate that the contractors of the Second Temple were not above cheating their royal client, Herod the Great. “It started with a simple question. We looked at the Western Wall and saw that…
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Fast Forward Haredi Woman Shot By Israeli Police Near Western Wall
woman that police said was dressed in blankets was shot in the leg by an officer at a security checkpoint at the entrance to the Western Wall. The woman, who was later identified as being a member of the extreme “Jewish Taliban” sect, did not stop at the checkpoint Wednesday evening when asked to by…
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Fast Forward Max Steinberg Family Consoled at Western Wall
The family of the late American-Israeli soldier Max Steinberg visited the Western Wall in Jerusalem. Evie and Stuart Steinberg, and their remaining son and daughter, who came to Israel last week for the funeral of Max Steinberg, 24, a southern California native who was killed in Gaza in an attack on the armored personnel carrier…
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Fast Forward Over 25,000 Gather at Western Wall To Pray for Kidnapped Teens
Thousands gathered at the Western Wall to pray for the safe return of three teens kidnapped in the West Bank. More than 25,000 people attended the Sunday evening service led by Chief Rabbi David Lau. Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef also was at the service, as were members of the Chief Rabbinate council and Knesset members….
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Fast Forward 14th-Century Hall Unearthed Beneath Kotel in Jerusalem
A grand hall from the early 14th century was fully excavated in the Western Wall tunnels. Excavated for more than four years under the supervision of the Israel Antiquities Authority, the hall was inaugurated Sunday by the Western Wall Heritage Foundation. The hall, located underground adjacent to the Western Wall Plaza — including beneath the…
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