When the world gets closer.

We help you see farther.

Sign up to our expressly international daily newsletter.

Already a subscriber? Log in .

You've reached your limit of one free article.

Get unlimited access to Worldcrunch

You can cancel anytime .

SUBSCRIBERS BENEFITS

Exclusive International news coverage

Ad-free experience NEW

Weekly digital Magazine NEW

9 daily & weekly Newsletters

Access to Worldcrunch archives

Free trial

30-days free access, then $2.90
per month.

Annual Access BEST VALUE

$19.90 per year, save $14.90 compared to monthly billing.save $14.90.

Subscribe to Worldcrunch
Israel

Landmark Women's Prayers At Jerusalem Western Wall Marred By Violent Protests, Arrests

HAARETZ, JERUSALEM POST (Israel)

Worldcrunch

JERUSALEM – Police on Friday arrested five ultra-Orthodox Jewish men who tried to disrupt prayers by female Jewish activists at the Western Wall in Jerusalem.

The Jerusalem District Court recently ruled women were allowed to wear prayer shawls during their monthly service, reports Haaretz.

The Women of the Wall activists had been asking form more than 20 years to be allowed to pray at the site while wearing prayers shawls and reading from Torah scrolls.

Their prayer service was disturbed by at least a thousand Haredi ultra-Orthodox protesters on Friday morning.

According to the Jerusalem Post, Haredi protesters spat on the three daughters of Rabbi Susan Silverman – sister of comedian Sarah Silverman – as water bottles, eggs and rocks were thrown onto the praying activists.

Rabbi Silverman told reporters that Haredi protesters represented “a fundamentalism and a belief in a single and very narrow view of god that I believe is idolatrous.”

Women of the Wall prayer at Jerusalem's Western Wall

Two police officers suffered minor injuries in the hustle.

Ultra-Orthodox Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister for Religious Affairs Naftali Bennet to find a fair compromise between the religious groups: “I ask everyone: please leave the Western Wall out of any dispute,” he said, reports Haaretz.

You've reached your limit of free articles.

To read the full story, start your free trial today.

Get unlimited access. Cancel anytime.

Exclusive coverage from the world's top sources, in English for the first time.

Insights from the widest range of perspectives, languages and countries.

FOCUS: Israel-Palestine War

Bibi Blinked: How The Ceasefire Deal Could Flip Israel's Whole Gaza War Logic

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pushed ahead a deal negotiated via Qatar, for a four-day truce and an exchange of 50 hostages for 150 Palestinian prisoners. Though the humanitarian and political pressure was mounting, Israel's all-out assault is suddenly halted, with unforeseen consequences for the future.

photo of someone holding a poster of a hostage

Families of Israeli hostages rally in Jerusalem

Nir Alon/ZUMA
Pierre Haski

Updated Nov. 22, 2023 at 8:55 p.m.

-Analysis-

PARIS — It's the first piece of good news in 46 days of war. In the early hours of Wednesday, Israel agreed to a deal that included a four-day ceasefire and the release of some of the hostages held by Hamas — 30 children and 20 women — in exchange for 150 Palestinian prisoners, again women and children. The real question is what happens next.

For the latest news & views from every corner of the world, Worldcrunch Today is the only truly international newsletter. Sign up here.

But first, this agreement, negotiated through the intermediary of Qatar, whose role is essential in this phase, must be implemented right away. This is a complex negotiation, because unlike the previous hostage-for-prisoner exchanges, it is taking place in the midst of a major war.

On the Palestinian side, although Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh is present in Doha, he does not make the decision alone — he must have the agreement of the leaders of the military wing, who are hiding somewhere in Gaza. It takes 24 hours to send a message back and forth. As you can imagine, it's not as simple as a phone call.

And on the Israeli side, a consensus had to be built around the agreement. Benjamin Netanyahu's far-right allies were opposed to the deal — in line with their eradication logic — even at the cost of Israeli lives. But the opposition of these discredited parties was ignored, and that will leave its mark.

Keep reading...Show less

The latest