For a selection of cases in which Honenu Attorneys represented Jews detained on or near the Temple Mount please click here.
The sign; Photo credit: Emanuel Brosh
Thursday, April 27, 2023, 16:11 On Wednesday, April 26, Israel’s Independence Day this year, a Temple Mount activist was detained on suspicion of tearing down a sign prohibiting Jews from ascending the Temple Mount. The activist was held in remand after he was told that the courts were closed because of Independence Day. On the following day, a hearing was held on his case at the Jerusalem Magistrates Court.
At the hearing, it turned out that although the police initially claimed that the Chief Rabbinate of Israel had hung the sign, after cross-examination by Honenu Attorney Nati Rom, a representative of the police stated that the sign was hung by the Western Wall Heritage Foundation, whose authority in this matter is not clear. There is also no clear indication on the sign that it was hung by the Western Wall Heritage Foundation. Consequently, the court unconditionally released the activist despite a request from the police to ban him from the area for 10 days. Attorney Rom stated that the manner in which the sign was hung and its legality would be examined.
After the hearing, the activist commented, “We will continue our efforts for permanent removal of the fraudulent, illegal, and offensive sign that was hung to harass [Jews] ascending the Temple Mount. There is no organization standing behind the sign and everybody disclaims responsibility for it. Immediately after my acquittal, I ascended the Temple Mount to give thanks for the ruling. I am pleased to see that the entrance [to the Temple Mount] is free of that dismal sign.”
Honenu Attorney Nati Rom, who represented the activist, added, “It is sad to see that a foundation whose authority is unclear is attempting to prevent Jews from ascending the Temple Mount. I hope that the sign was not placed in order to exaggerate the status of the Western Wall, whose sanctity and importance stem from it being an exterior [support] wall for the Temple Mount, the site of the Holy Temple.”