The annual Tisha Be'av walk, organized by Women in Green, was held in Jerusalem as planned, however, only 50 people were permitted to participate due to coronavirus restrictions. The Women in Green movement emphasized that the 50 participants who took part in Thursday's walk represented the thousands who were unable to be in attendance this year. The march began in Independence Park with a reading of Megilat Eicha, which is traditionally read on Tisha Be'av every year. Following this, the walk went through a route with various notable historic sites of interest along the way until the ending point near the Lion's Gate in the Old City. Historian Aryeh Klein led the walk, as he has done for years, and told several stories of the unique history of Jerusalem along the way, ranging from anecdotes from the Roman era, as well as more recent stories from the Six Day War. As it does every year, the walk concluded with the participants singing 'Hatikva' and 'Ani Ma'amin,' before its participants went to pray at the Western Wall, the last remnant of the Temple. The walk is the continuation of the ancient Jewish tradition that ceased during the British Mandate period, but was renewed in the '90s by Women in Green. Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion made a pre-recorded statement before the walk. “The walk also expresses the deepening of the Jewish people's roots in Jerusalem,” he said, blessing the participants of the walk and its organizers with the hope for the building of the Temple next year and that masses of people will come “to be blessed by its glory and holiness.” Attorney Nili Naouri, head of Israel is Forever, also spoke before the ceremony to express the lament in the day of observance. “As punishment for the sin of the spies, the People of Israel remained in the desert for 40 years until all of that generation passed away. Have we learned our lesson? No! For 53 years we have been checking whether parts of the Land of Israel that were liberated in the Six Day War are worth it,' said Naouri. 'Should we trade them for a sham peace, shouldn't we give them to a people that doesn't even exist and part of whose population are terrorists? We have once again forgotten that God gave us this Land, we have again forgotten that Judea and Samaria and the Temple Mount are the source of our right to the entire Land. We must listen to Caleb ben Yefuneh: 'Let us go up and possess it for we are well able to overcome it.'' Several high profile members of Knesset made pre-recorded statements before the event as well. This included Bezalel Smotrich (Yamina) and Higher Education and Water Resources Minister Ze'ev Elkin (Likud), Transportation Minister Miri Regev “The new nationalism that we are rebuilding here on its ruins must take upon itself, with greater resolution, the building of Jerusalem, materially and spiritually,” said Smotrich, adding that “there is one specific day when we are reminded of the lack of our sanctuary, and this entire walk around the walls reflects the longings to build Jerusalem in the innermost, most holy and noble meaning. These longings are the engine that must drive our motivation throughout the year. 'We connect to the sadness and mourning over the destruction and draw much strength from it to build the Land and Jerusalem as the heart of our nationalist revolt.'
