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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Opinion Handing the Western Wall to the Judaizers
Wikipedia Quick, if you’re a settler-dominated government uninterested in sharing Jerusalem with the Palestinian people, what’s a good way to telegraph your position without raising a ruckus? Well, one good way would be to turn over a sizable portion of Judaism’s holiest site to the management of a maximalist settler group — which is precisely…
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News Robinson’s Arch Handed to Right-Wing Group in Western Wall Shock
The Israeli government tentatively agreed to a deal that puts a right-wing organization in charge of the Robinson’s Arch area of the Western Wall. Under the draft agreement, the government transfers control of the Jerusalem Archaeological Park and Davidson Center to the City of David Foundation, Haaretz reported. The foundation runs the City of David…
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News Shame of Indoor Women’s Section at Western Wall
(Haaretz) — “You don’t belong here,” said the man trying to shut the heavy wooden door in my face. “Get out.” I was standing in a little-known, indoor women’s section at the Western Wall, one that can be approached only through the outdoor men’s section. The space is clearly designated – in stone and glass…
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The Schmooze Ben and Jerry’s Excellent Holy Land Adventure
The Christmas-release underdog this year — in the ring with “American Hustle” and “Wolf of Wall Street” — is “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” in which Ben Stiller plays a man with a vivid imagination who embarks on the adventure of a lifetime. In an interview with Parade to promote the movie, Stiller dished about a…
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News Reform Movement, Seeking To Stem Decline, Eyes Religious Pluralism in Israel
When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke from Jerusalem recently to Reform Judaism’s large biennial conference via Jumbotron, the 5,000 Jews gathered here offered only pro forma applause as he restated his commitment to a two-state solution for Israel’s 46-year occupation of the West Bank. But then, Netanyahu turned to the issue of religious pluralism…
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Opinion Is Robinson’s Arch Part of Western Wall — Or Not?
(JTA) — The key dispute in the recent feud between Women of the Wall and some of the group’s founders is whether Robinson’s Arch — an area adjacent to the Kotel plaza meant for egalitarian prayer — counts as the Western Wall. Anat Hoffman and most of the group’s board has said they’re willing, in…
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The Schmooze No Kotel Bat Mitzvah for Paula Abdul
Paula Abdul canceled her much-hyped bat mitzvah at the Western Wall, opting instead for a low-key ceremony in the town of Safed, The Times of Israel reports. Per Israel’s Tourism Industry, which hosted the former “American Idol” and “The X-Factor” judge, the switch was due to jet lag. But the officiating rabbi, Eyal Riess of…
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Fast Forward 800 Gather for Women of Wall’s 25th Anniversary at Kotel
In a display of the changes the group has experienced this year, Women of the Wall held a peaceful prayer service under police protection at the Western Wall to mark the group’s 25th anniversary. Absent from Monday’s service, which the group said drew at least 800 worshippers, were large crowds of Orthodox girls who –…
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