In a strong rebuke to the ultra-Orthodox custodian of the Western Wall, the High Court of Justice ruled on Wednesday that women are not to be subjected any longer to intense body searches when entering the Western Wall.
Violent skirmishes broke out Wednesday morning at the Western Wall as Reform, Conservative and Women of the Wall leaders and activists brought 14 Torah scrolls into the site in defiance of administrative regulations.
Rav of the Kosel and Holy Sites Shmuel Rabinowitz does not have semicha according to a Galei Tzahal (Army Radio) report.
An egalitarian prayer service at the Western Wall descended into a bad tempered skirmish on Thursday afternoon, when haredi demonstrators sabotaged an event held by the Reform and Conservative Movements to underline their demands for a pluralist prayer space at the site.
A potentially explosive prayer service planned for Thursday afternoon by the Reform and Masorti (Conservative) Movements in the upper Western Wall plaza has been approved by the legal adviser to the Religious Services Ministry and the Attorney General.
Israel’s Chief Rabbinate Council harshly criticized Thursday the conduct of Kotel Rabbi, Shmuel Rabinowitz, for his involvement of dividing the Kotel following the government’s approval for expanding the egalitarian prayer section.