From the Liveblog of
Thursday, July 23, 2026
Thousands of Jewish worshipers ascending Temple Mount, handful arrested over prayer, group says
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A spokesman from Beyadenu, which advocates for Jewish worship on the Temple Mount, says that some 3,000 Jewish visitors have visited the site today, with hundreds currently waiting in line to enter.
Hundreds more are expected to ascend the flashpoint site in the afternoon, he tells The Times of Israel.
The spokesman estimates that a dozen have been arrested so far for praying on the western side of the Temple Mount, as opposed to the eastern side where Jewish prayer is de facto permitted by police.
Jewish worshipers ascend Temple Mount on Tisha B'Av, pray and seen here performing the priestly blessing in massive departure from the status quo w/ Jordan, which ostensibly administers the site pic.twitter.com/PkQkuUpkr9
— charlie summers (@cbsu03) July 23, 2026
The arrested comprise only a small number of those who have prayed at the site’s western half, he adds, due to the “sheer amount” of worshipers.
Police are permitting Jewish worshipers to bring Tisha B’Av liturgy up to the Temple Mount. National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir was seen with a prayer book and worshiped openly at the site, after having done the same on the fast day last year.
Under the terms of an unwritten arrangement established after Israel captured the Old City in the 1967 war, Muslims can pray at the site, known as the Haram al-Sharif, while Jews are allowed to visit but not pray there. Ben Gvir has repeatedly declared that he permits Jewish prayer at the site, while the Prime Minister’s Office has insisted that the arrangement remains in force.
The Times of Israel Community.