Supreme Court to Hear Plea to Open Temple Mount to Jews on Saturdays

Israel's Supreme Court has scheduled a hearing for next Wednesday to consider a petition demanding that the Temple Mount (known to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif) be opened to Jewish visitors on Saturdays. The panel will consist of Justices Ofer Grosskopf, Alex Stein, and Khaled Kabub. The respondents, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, and Jerusalem District Police Commander Avshalom Peled, have been ordered to submit their response by Monday, 48 hours before the hearing.

The petitioners, Asaf Yechazkel Fried and Yosef Meir Rabin, are challenging the current policy that closes the site to Jews on Saturdays. They argue that this closure is unreasonable and discriminatory, particularly as Saturdays are a day when many Jews are free from work and studies, making it an ideal time for them to visit. They also contend that the current policy deviates from the arrangement that was in place after the Six-Day War, when non-Muslim visitors could access the site six days a week, excluding Fridays.

The petitioners claim that after the site's closure during the Second Intifada and its reopening in 2003, visits on Saturdays were not reinstated, thereby altering the previous status quo. They point to the fact that the site is open on Jewish holidays that do not fall on a Saturday as further support for their argument. Additionally, they cite a Knesset subcommittee report that reportedly recommended resuming Saturday openings, as was the practice until 2000.

The petition follows recent inquiries to government and police officials. According to the petition, one petitioner was directed from Ben-Gvir's office to the Prime Minister, while the Jerusalem police commander stated that visits are permitted only from Sunday to Thursday. MK Simcha Rothman, Chairman of the Constitution, Law and Justice Committee, has also advocated for opening the site on Saturdays during the High Holy Days, even requesting permission for the Shofar to be sounded.

The court has already denied an urgent request for an interim order that would have allowed for immediate preparations to open the Temple Mount to Jews on Saturdays during the upcoming High Holy Days, which include Rosh Hashanah, Sukkot, and Shemini Atzeret. The petitioners also dispute the justification of potential disturbances as a reason for the closure, asserting that recent law enforcement on the Mount demonstrates that order can be maintained and that there is no current security justification for keeping it closed on Saturdays.