Israel’s High Court of Justice (Bagatz) allows the continuation of lawlessness at the Gate of Mercy (The Golden Gate)
Judge Mazuz rejected a request by the Regavim movement to stop the Waqf’s work at the Gate of Mercy • Regavim: a reward for law breakers
By: Ben Lemuel 15 Sivan 5779 – Tuesday, 18 June 2019
High Court Judge Meni Mazuz rejected another request by the Regavim movement to issue an interim injunction to stop the illegal works being carried out by the Muslim Waqf in the Gate of Mercy (Golden Gate) building on the Temple Mount.
The second request was submitted after in recent weeks the Waqf continued with illegal work, despite a closure order issued by the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court last March, which ordered the closure of the compound for all activity.
The works included installing a speaker for a muezzin, laying out new prayer rugs, installing chandeliers and partitions.
Mazuz wrote in his decision that “after reviewing the request and the respondents’ responses, I did not see any change from my decision of March 19, 2019, in which I did not agree to the request for an interim order.”
Attorney Avi Segal from the Regavim movement says following the decision: “Unfortunately, the state has broken away from all its obligations and gives a reward to those who trample the law with a rough foot. To our great regret, the Supreme Court did not block this spoiled and distorted behavior.”
Quote from https://www.regavim.org/tag/mercy-gate/
As if the massive Al-Aksa Mosque wasn’t enough, Israel’s Supreme Court has rejected a petition by the Regavim movement to prevent the construction of a mosque at the Gate of Mercy on the Temple Mount reports 0404. The court claimed that they “don’t get involved” in these types of disputes unless it is regarding “extreme circumstances”.
This is not the first time that the Muslim Waqf has illegally built structures at the expense of ancient relics on the Temple Mount that they eventually converted into mosques. In the past, the Waqf has done the same type of thing at Solomon’s Stables as well and the Huldah Gates.
The Regavim movement appealed to the Supreme Court stressing that the state itself allowed this to happen despite the fact that “the Waqf Council as well as Hamas operatives illegally broke into the compound and operated hostile activities” from there and asked for a court order to close the compound but the state didn’t enact any such measure.
Regavim responded to the decision saying: “Regarding basic laws of human dignity, the Supreme Court has nullified laws passed by the legislative branch. They have nullified the law of ‘Welcoming Committees’ which destroyed flourishing Jewish towns because they would not allow any sort of discrimination in Israel. But when there is discrimination of human dignity on a daily basis against Jews on the Temple Mount, that’s fine as far as they’re concerned. This time, the Supreme Court has decided not to be activists, has abandoned the Jewish right to worship in their holiest place.”
Rabbi Avigdor Neventzal and the majority of Chareidi Rabbis don’t allow Jews to ascend to the Temple Mount at this time. However, Rabbis such as, Rabbi Dov Lior, and Rabbi Yisrael Ariel do permit ascent by Jews to this part of the Temple Mount after proper purification. And so too in theory did Rabbi Moshe Feinstein permit this, which his son in-law Rabbi Tendler z”l put into practice.
We support turning the place by the Mercy Gate into a place for Jewish prayer for the benefit of those that hold the lenient view about the Temple Mount. We do so for the same reason that we support building new Israeli settlements in the territory liberated during the 6 Day War.
See: Building New Israeli Settlements – The Opinion of the Gaon – according to Kol Hator
Regarding how to answer a possible objection of using “Kol Hator” to justify making a Mercy Gate place for Jewish prayer on the Temple Mount see my post: Did Maran, Rabbi Avraham Y. Kook also follow the Kol Hator Approach to the Temple Mount and the Temple? Authored by Shlomo Moshe Scheinman
Appendix: Years ago when I had my exchange of letters with Rabbi Avigdor Neventzal Shlit”a about the subject of ascent to the Temple Mount, I was operating under the restriction imposed by the head of Yeshivat Mercaz Harav, Rabbi Avraham Shapira, who told me not to ascend to the Temple Mount because he was not sure which are the permitted areas and which are the forbidden ones. If we knew however, he asserted it would be a mitzva to ascend after purification to strengthen our sovereignty.
Recently, I asked Rabbi Dov Lior if I was still prohibited to ascend because of Rabbi Shapira’s ruling. He told me that given new knowledge we have about the Temple Mount since the time Rabbi Shapira was niftar, in his view, Rabbi Shapira’s ruling is no longer applicable.
Rabbi Lior permitted me to ascend after proper purification to those areas indicated on the map above.
New Addition: When I ascended to the Temple Mount I was stringent on 2 purification issues. I do not take responsibility to instruct others how to purify.
post by Shlomo Moshe Scheinman