Housing Minister: Temple Mount must be open to Jews at all times

Ariel plans to continue visiting holy site to "strengthen our sovereignty" over the Mount.

By LAHAV HARKOV
Uri Ariel (photo credit: Uri Ariel's office)
Uri Ariel
(photo credit: Uri Ariel's office)
Jews must be able to pray on the Temple Mount whenever they want, Construction and Housing Minister Uri Ariel said during a visit to the holy site on Wednesday morning.
Ariel ascended the Mount on the eve of Rosh Hashana, and expressed hope that one day Jewish worshipers would be able to do the same on the holiday.
“The Temple Mount is the holiest place for the Jewish people, and must be open for prayer at every hour to every Jew,” he said.
The Bayit Yehudi minister said he “plans to continue to go up [to the Mount] and strengthen the State of Israel’s sovereignty on the site.”
“The Temple Mount is ours, and it cannot be argued about or negotiated,” Ariel said.
He launched virtual online tours of the Temple Mount last July on Tisha Be’av, the day that, according to tradition, the Messiah will be born, a precursor for the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem.
“[Secular people] aren’t taught [about it], so they don’t know anything about the destruction of the Temple.
They think the Temple Mount is a place where rocks are thrown and right-wing people make provocations,” Ariel said.