BREAKING NEWS

Jerusalem mayor arrives at Western Wall to inspect site of fallen stone

Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat and the city's engineer Shlomo Eshkol arrived at the Kotel (Western Wall) to inspect the site where a stone fell out of the ancient wall earlier on Monday, the Jerusalem municipality said.
As per Eshkol's decision, the site was fenced off and entry into it will not be allowed until the Antiquities Authority has inspected it. The authority will map out the stones in the coming days in order to preserve them and prevent further danger.
Barkat said that "a great miracle occurred this morning when the stone, weighting some 100 kilos, fell near a praying woman and did not harm her."
He stated that he intends to ask the Prime Minister's Office to expand the Antiquities Authority's periodic inspections to include the Ezrat Yisrael section and the southern Kotel as well, in order to prevent disintegration of the stones and to ensure the wall can be approached without risk.