Kosel Rav: Waqf Incites Against Kosel Renovation

Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, the religious official responsible for the Kosel, condemned on Wednesday what he termed the Islamic trust’s “incitement” against plans to renovate visitors’ restrooms at the site, The Jerusalem Post reported.

Muslim clerics at the Waqf, the Muslim religious trust for their holy sites in Yerushalayim, are alleging that the renovation is part of an ongoing Israeli conspiracy to take over the area.

Rabbi Rabinowitz released a statement rejecting the Waqf claim as false.

“The expansion of the restrooms for visitors at the Kosel is being carried out by The Western Wall Heritage Foundation,” the statement said.

“It is unfortunate that a minimal action designed to cater to the needs of visitors to the remnant of the Jewish Temple is turning into a contentious issue and a pretext for unnecessary tension,” the Rav said.

Rabbi Rabinowitz added that Israel must make “an emphatic statement” emphasizing its right over the holiest site in Judaism “by deepening education regarding the importance of the Kosel to the Jewish people.”

This article appeared in print on page 6 of the February 19th, 2015 edition of Hamodia.