JERUSALEM: Israel's government formally suspended plans on Sunday for a mixed-gender prayer space at Jerusalem's Western Wall, bowing to opposition from Orthodox Jewish politicians to reforms at one of Judaism's holiest sites.
The decision will put Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at odds with the Conservative and Reform movements of Judaism that have large followings outside Israel but will smooth his relations with ultra-Orthodox parties in his ruling coalition.
The wall is revered as a vestige of Judaism's two ancient temples and access to it is segregated by gender. Most religious rites take place in the men's section in accordance with centuries-old Orthodox standards that hold sway in Israel.
The government has faced calls by more progressive Jewish movements in Israel and abroad to add an egalitarian section along the wall and in 2016 voted 15-5 to do so, over the objections of ultra-Orthodox Cabinet members.
But in the face of opposition from the two ultra-Orthodox parties in Netanyahu's coalition, the plan never got off the ground. Last week, the two parties proposed rescinding the 2016 decision.
At its weekly meeting on Sunday, the Cabinet voted to formally freeze its implementation, the officials said, and Netanyahu instructed a minister from his Likud party to formulate a new proposal.
"Today's decision signifies a retreat from that agreement and will make our work to bring Israel and the Jewish world together increasingly more difficult," Natan Sharansky, chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel, a main outreach group to Jewish communities abroad.
The mixed-gender section was to have been located at a separate expanse of the wall that, when seen from the plaza looking toward the wall, stands to the right of the current Orthodox-administered compound where men and women will still worship separately.
More liberal streams of Judaism, which outside of Israel have larger followings than Orthodoxy, chafe at the restriction.
The wall is officially administered by an ultra-Orthodox rabbi.
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Israel freezes plan for mixed-sex Jewish prayer site at Western Wall
Israel freezes plan for mixed-sex Jewish prayer site at Western Wall
Supporters of Tunisia’s Saied rally amid deepening political divisions
TUNIS: Tunisian President Kais Saied’s supporters rallied in the capital on Wednesday calling the opposition “traitors,” following mounting street protests in recent weeks that have highlighted widening political divisions.
The rival rallies come amid a deepening economic crisis marked by high inflation, shortages of some basic goods and poor public services, which have fueled public anger.
Rights groups have accused Saied of an unprecedented crackdown on the opposition, saying he is using the judiciary and police to stifle criticism. Saied rejects the accusations, saying he is cleansing the country of traitors and a corrupt elite.
Demonstrators gathered in central Tunis waving national flags and chanting slogans backing Saied, whom they credit with confronting corruption and entrenched political elites.
They accused Saied’s opponents of seeking to destabilize the country, describing them as “traitors.” They chanted “people want Saied again” and “we support the leadership and sovereignty.”
“We are here to rescue Tunisia from traitors and colonial lackeys,” protester Saleh Ghiloufi said.
Saied’s critics say arrests of opposition leaders, civil society groups and journalists underscore an authoritarian turn by the president since he took on extraordinary powers in 2021 to rule by decree.
The powerful UGTT union has called a nationwide strike next month.
A Tunisian court last week sentenced prominent opposition figure Abir Moussi to 12 years in prison, in what critics say is another step toward entrenching Saied’s one-man rule.
While an appeals court last month handed jail terms of up to 45 years to dozens of opposition leaders, business people and lawyers on charges of conspiracy to overthrow Saied.
Saied was elected in 2019 with an overwhelming mandate, but his consolidation of power has alarmed domestic opponents and international partners, who warn Tunisia is retreating from democratic governance.
The rival rallies come amid a deepening economic crisis marked by high inflation, shortages of some basic goods and poor public services, which have fueled public anger.
Rights groups have accused Saied of an unprecedented crackdown on the opposition, saying he is using the judiciary and police to stifle criticism. Saied rejects the accusations, saying he is cleansing the country of traitors and a corrupt elite.
Demonstrators gathered in central Tunis waving national flags and chanting slogans backing Saied, whom they credit with confronting corruption and entrenched political elites.
They accused Saied’s opponents of seeking to destabilize the country, describing them as “traitors.” They chanted “people want Saied again” and “we support the leadership and sovereignty.”
“We are here to rescue Tunisia from traitors and colonial lackeys,” protester Saleh Ghiloufi said.
Saied’s critics say arrests of opposition leaders, civil society groups and journalists underscore an authoritarian turn by the president since he took on extraordinary powers in 2021 to rule by decree.
The powerful UGTT union has called a nationwide strike next month.
A Tunisian court last week sentenced prominent opposition figure Abir Moussi to 12 years in prison, in what critics say is another step toward entrenching Saied’s one-man rule.
While an appeals court last month handed jail terms of up to 45 years to dozens of opposition leaders, business people and lawyers on charges of conspiracy to overthrow Saied.
Saied was elected in 2019 with an overwhelming mandate, but his consolidation of power has alarmed domestic opponents and international partners, who warn Tunisia is retreating from democratic governance.
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