Israel\u2019s highest court has delivered a unanimous rebuke to state and municipal authorities over long-stalled plans to upgrade the Western Wall\u2019s egalitarian prayer section, intensifying a dispute that has come to symbolize broader tensions over religious pluralism in Israel.<\/p>\n
In a decision issued Thursday, an expanded seven-justice panel of the High Court of Justice ordered the national government and the Jerusalem Municipality to move forward with building permits needed for repairs and infrastructure improvements at the Ezrat Israel prayer platform, the area designated for mixed-gender and non-Orthodox worship south of the main Western Wall plaza.<\/p>\n
The ruling imposes strict procedural deadlines aimed at ending what the justices described as years of exceptional delay following a 2016 deal to permit egalitarian prayer at the holy site<\/a>. Acceding to pressure from haredi Orthodox politicians, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu froze the deal the following year,<\/a> triggering a legal petition by Judaism\u2019s Reform and Masorti\/Conservative movements, Women of the Wall and Israeli religious pluralism advocacy groups.<\/p>\n Today, the groups say, area remains difficult to access, lacks adequate facilities, and does not provide meaningful proximity to the Wall\u2019s stones \u2014 conditions they view as discriminatory toward non-Orthodox worshippers.<\/p>\n \u201cFor nine years, the state and the municipality have been dragging their feet and refusing to promote an egalitarian, respectful, and accessible alternative in the Ezrat Israel,\u201d Attorneys Ori Narov and Orly Erez-Likhovski, who represent the Reform Movement in Israel, one of the petitioners, said in a statement to Times of Israel<\/a>. \u201cNow, the court is ordering an end to the foot-dragging.\u201d<\/p>\n The court did not revisit legal questions surrounding prayer rights at the site, emphasizing that the decision focused on the \u201cpractical implementation\u201d of matters already litigated. Instead, the justices targeted bureaucratic obstacles that have repeatedly slowed or blocked construction, particularly disputes involving planning approvals and the Israel Antiquities Authority.<\/p>\n The court ruled that existing government approvals are still valid and that any remaining sign-off from the Antiquities Authority must be decided within 14 days, removing key grounds for further delays. After that, the state must file new building permit requests within 14 days. If officials don\u2019t respond within 45 days, it will count as a rejection and the state must appeal. The state and city must also update the court within 90 days.<\/p>\n