T

he battle over control of the Western Wall took a strange turn last week.

First, Culture and Sports Minister Miri Regev resigned her post as head of the Ministerial Committee for Holy Places, established to determine the size and location of the alternate prayer space for non-Orthodox women, citing her “conscience.”

“Everyone is allowed to visit the Western Wall and pray there as long as they respect the site and its heritage,” said the non-Orthodox Regev. “We did not return to the holiest of our sites in order to desecrate it. I have faith and hope that we will preserve and honor the sanctity of the Western Wall.”

Then, this Sunday, Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked quit her post on the same committee (which also includes Religious Affairs Minister David Azulai of Shas), suggesting that the planned renovations to the southern portion of the Kosel Plaza would cause irreparable

archeological damage. This was unusual, because Shaked (and her Jewish Home Party boss Naftali Bennett) had initially supported the renovation of the so-called egalitarian plaza.

Perhaps stranger is that Prime Minister Netanyahu seems determined to proceed with the plan, to which he has already dedicated an NIS 18 million budget.

What’s going on here?

The Knesset initially authorized the compromise, which included establishing a new public authority to manage the mixed prayer area jointly with Reform and Conservative representatives as well as from Women of the Wall (WOW). The decision gave unprecedented state recognition to Reform and Conservative prayer.

Chareidi MKs worked around the clock to kill the legislation, but that didn’t stop Netanyahu, who appointed Ronen Peretz, the deputy cabinet secretary, to shepherd the project.

In April, the right-wing B’tzedek organization appealed to the High Court against the Antiquities Authority, claiming that the work was illegal. In response, Peretz, at the behest of Netanyahu, began to prepare a plan, in cooperation with the Antiquities Authority, to begin construction work at Robinson’s Arch and turn it into a pluralistic religious prayer site.

According to Clause 29 of the Antiquities Law, all work at a religious site requires the approval of the Ministerial Committee for Holy Places, whose decisions are legally binding, similar to law. In addition, its members cannot be replaced, nor can the prime minister be placed at its head, unless one of the members resigns.

Netanyahu pressed Regev to convene the committee in order to authorize the work. After consulting with Jerusalem chief rabbi, the Rishon L’Tzion Rav Shlomo Moshe Amar, Regev decided last Thursday to resign from the committee. Then, a few days later, Shaked made her decision.

When Netanyahu asked Regev why she’d resigned, she said, “You have your opinion, and I have mine, and I’m opposed. I don’t want to see women wearing talleisim at the Kosel. The Reform have other places, they don’t need the Kosel.”

Netanyahu replied: “Diaspora Minister Naftali Bennett was the one who first brought the initiative. I understand that for both of you, it’s suddenly no good. In any case, I’m going to advance the matter, and I’ll bear full responsibility.”

Since then, Netanyahu has replaced Shaked with Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz, Azulai remains, and the prime minister will serve as chair of the plenum.

According to the prime minister’s office, Netanyahu is pushing the plan in an attempt to head off the High Court, which he fears has more onerous designs for the Kosel Plaza. “The prime minister wants to complete the bureaucracy involved in authorizing the work, because the state has promised the High Court to enlarge the prayer area,” said the prime minister’s office in a statement. “There’s concern that if the authorization for enlarging the area is delayed, the High Court will rule in favor of joint prayer in the central prayer area — a ruling that could spark a severe political crisis with the chareidi parties.”

As the world turns, so do developments at the Kosel Plaza.

(Originally featured in Mishpacha, Issue 717)