Live Update 
From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, February 17, 2026
From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, February 17, 2026
High Court begins hearing on egalitarian prayer at Western Wall
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleRossella Tercatin is The Times of Israel's archaeology and religions reporter.
Members of the Reform movement and the Hebrew Union College hold a mixed men and women prayer in front of the Western Wall, in Jerusalem's Old City, on November 16, 2017. (Noam Rivkin Fenton /Flash90)
The High Court of Justice’s hearing on rights for egalitarian prayers at the Western Wall begins.
It is the first hearing on the matter in three years.
Isaac Amit, the chief justice, presides over the hearing, which has a panel of seven judges.
Petitions on the matter were submitted by Masorti Israel, the Reform Movement in Israel, and Women of the Wall over several years, with the most recent hearing held in February 2023.
The demands include ensuring access to the Western Wall from the egalitarian plaza, known as “Ezrat Israel,” and allowing Torah scrolls to be brought into the women’s prayer section.
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