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selichot

People ride bicycles in Jerusalem on the eve of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement and the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, September 20, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
September 20, 2026, 2:26 pm
Israel shuts down for Yom Kippur, after deadly West Bank terror shooting and with IDF on high alert
Public transportation and airspace close on eve of Day of Atonement; poll finds most Jewish Israelis will fast, including about half of those who identify as secular
By ToI Staff and Emanuel Fabian
Jews praying for forgiveness (Selichot), at the Western Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem, early on October 1, 2025, on the eve of the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
October 1, 2025, 4:31 pm
Israel marks tense Yom Kippur, as Hamas mulls Trump’s offer and army fights in Gaza
On Day of Atonement, Navy prepares to intercept large Gaza-bound aid flotilla while troops have been reinforced along all fronts amid concerns for potential friction
By ToI Staff
Rabba Anat Sharbat leads Selihot services in Tel Aviv's Hostages Square, Sept. 22, 2024. (Courtesy Anat Sharbat/via JTA)
September 28, 2024, 8:53 am
From Hostages Square, pre-High Holiday prayers aim to transcend political rifts
As rallies to free the captives become synonymous with anti-government protests, an evening of Selichot at the Tel Aviv square seeks to de-politicize the cause, create inclusive space
By Deborah Danan
Members of the Piyyut Ensemble, including Riff Cohen (third from left) record 'Hoshana,' ahead of the Jewish High Holidays (Screen capture/YouTube)
September 13, 2024, 8:20 am
With High Holidays on horizon, a musical group takes penitence on tour
Piyyut Ensemble joins with rocker Berry Sakharov and singer Riff Cohen for Tel Aviv show as band puts season’s liturgy, ancient and new, onstage
By Jessica Steinberg
President Isaac Herzog at an award ceremony at the President's Residence in Jerusalem, September 6, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
September 20, 2023, 8:06 am
At Selichot event, Herzog urges forgiveness and unity to overcome national crisis
President says ability to live together is being ‘tested’; calls on elected officials to ‘pay attention’ to political, social, security situation and its consequences
By ToI Staff
Tens of thousands gather at the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City for final 'selichot' services before Yom Kippur, on October 3, 2022. (Western Wall Heritage Foundation)
October 4, 2022, 11:01 am
Tens of thousands visit Western Wall for final ‘selichot’ services before Yom Kippur
Chief rabbis, Jerusalem mayor preside over late-night prayers ahead of Day of Atonement, which begins Tuesday night; site sees more than 1 million visits over past six weeks
By Judah Ari Gross
Preside Isaac Herzog addresses a Selichot event at his official residence in Jerusalem on September 28, 2022 (Amos Ben-Gershom/GPO)
September 28, 2022, 9:23 pm
Herzog seeks to reduce ‘extremism’ and ‘violence’ in charged pre-election climate
Amid activist altercations, political recriminations and polarized atmosphere, president says he is ‘disturbed and worried,’ calls for moderation
By Carrie Keller-Lynn
Fasting for climate outside the president's residence on September 10, 2021. From right: Michal Deutsch, Tamar Deutsch, Matanel Ciechanowski. (Sue Surkes/Times of Israel)
September 13, 2021, 10:15 pm
Activist goes on hunger strike to press president on climate crisis
Michal Deutsch, 27, wants her protest to raise public awareness and convince Isaac Herzog to use his pulpit to put advancing a climate law at top of country’s agenda
By Sue Surkes
Israeli soldiers visit the Western Wall Complex during a 'Selichot tour' of Jerusalem in September 2021. (Israel Defense Forces)
September 13, 2021, 4:27 pm
Tens of thousands of IDF soldiers flock to Jerusalem for ‘introspection’
Over the course of a month, during the penitential period ahead of Yom Kippur, over 30,000 troops visiting the capital for ‘Selichot tours,’ Education Corps officer says
By Judah Ari Gross
File: Then-Minister of Jerusalem Affairs Ze'ev Elkin attends Sukkot prayers at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, on September 30, 2018. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
August 31, 2021, 10:00 pm
Minister slams Western Wall COVID limits for not also applying to Temple Mount
Housing Minister Ze’ev Elkin says there’s a higher risk of infection at mass prayer of Muslims than during selichot services, due to low vaccination rates in the Arab sector
By ToI Staff
View of a classroom in a girls shool in Tzfat, August 30, 2021. (David Cohen/Flash90)
August 31, 2021, 1:52 am
Ministers OK barring unvaccinated and untested teachers, doctors from workplaces
‘Red City’ high schools with less than 70% vaccination rates to go to distance learning; cabinet also approves limits for mass ‘selichot’ prayer services at Western Wall
By ToI Staff
Hadassah Ein Kerem team members wearing safety gear as they work in the coronavirus ward of the Hadassah Ein Kerem medical center in Jerusalem on August 25, 2021. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
August 30, 2021, 2:42 pm
Bennett backs expanding virus restrictions to health, education workers
Under proposal, access to schools, hospitals will require a Green Pass; PM also approves framework for holding mass ‘selichot’ prayer services at Western Wall in coming weeks
By Stuart Winer and ToI Staff
Israeli troops fire a cannon from a position on the Golan Heights during the Yom Kippur War, on October 11, 1973. (Radovan Zeev/Bamahane/Defense Ministry Archives)
September 18, 2018, 2:41 pm
Atonement: 6 things to know for September 18
The Jewish people prepare to mark the High Holiday of Yom Kippur, and the country’s papers focus on forgiveness and remembrance of traumas past
By Adiv Sterman
Thousands pray for forgiveness (Selichot) at the Western Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem on September 16, 2018. (Noam Revkin Fenton/Flash90)
September 18, 2018, 9:07 am
Thousands gather at Western Wall ahead of Yom Kippur
Worshipers crowd holy site as country prepares for holiest day on the Jewish calendar
By ToI Staff
Sivan Rahav Meir
October 8, 2017, 12:38 pm
Sivan Rahav Meir
An apology to the Western Wall
One million people voted with their feet and visited the Kotel in the 6 weeks from the first of Elul to Sukkot
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