The two rabbis wrote in a joint letter that the risk was too great and that everyone was obligated to not carry out any "act of provocation."
On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that the Temple Mount will remain closed to Jewish worshipers on Sunday, Shavuot eve, as it has been throughout the month of Ramadan, citing the current security escalations.
בשל המתיחות בירושלים: הר הבית יישאר סגור לעליית יהודים גם היום. "מנהלת עולי הר הבית" טוענת כי נמסר לה מהמשטרה שעל פי החלטת הדרג המדיני, ההר נסגר עד להודעה חדשה(צילום: מטה ארגוני הקודש)@AsaelPeled pic.twitter.com/EbCU7NlnNH
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"The State of Israel is rewarding terrorism by keeping the Temple Mount, the holiest place for Jews, closed off to Jewish worshipers," countered Otzma Yehudit head Itamar Ben-Gvir.
"Instead of closing it off to Muslims and placing cops in mosques, Israel is closing the Mount to Jews," he said.
Kanievsky and Edelstein are two leading rabbis in the haredi Lithuanian (non-hassidic) world, and their voices tend to carry a significant amount of weight and authority.
This warning comes amid ongoing clashes throughout the country between Jews and Arabs, as well as ongoing military clashes between the IDF and the Gaza-based terrorist groups Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad – who credit the Jewish presence on the Temple Mount, overlooking the Western Wall, as one of the motivations for the ongoing clashes.
Going to the Western Wall is important on the Shavuot holiday, as it is one of the three festivals - along with Passover and Sukkot - where Jews were traditionally required to go to the Temple in Jerusalem and offer sacrifices. As such, there is usually a high attendance of Jewish worshipers at the Western Wall for these holidays.
Despite the urgings of Kanievsky and Edelstein, many worshipers are still expected to arrive. According to Walla, both police and the Western Wall Heritage Foundation are preparing for the arrival of tens of thousands during Shavuot, which begins Sunday night.