Jewish visitors were permitted to sing and dance openly throughout the entire Temple Mount compound on Wednesday, following a policy directive issued by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
The development represents a dramatic change from past practice, where Jewish prayer—even whispered—on the Temple Mount could lead to arrest, detention or being barred from the site for months.
For decades, Israeli police enforced strict limitations on Jewish religious expression on the Mount, citing security concerns and maintaining the status quo agreement with the Waqf Islamic trust that administers the site – which is also home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque
However, under Ben-Gvir’s new guidelines, police have been instructed to allow Jewish prayers and songs throughout the compound, according to Israel National News.
Israel Police Commissioner Daniel Levy reportedly ordered officers not to restrict Jewish singing on any part of the Mount.
This policy was first publicly hinted at during a meeting held three weeks ago between Ben-Gvir and organizations advocating for greater Jewish access to the Temple Mount.
During that meeting, participants urged the minister to expand permissions for religious expression beyond a single location and to permit singing out loud across the compound.
One activist who regularly ascends the Mount reportedly told Ben-Gvir "You've worked magic since taking office," adding: “This is a historic transformation we never imagined could happen.”
Ben-Gvir, a frequent visitor to Judaism’s holiest site, responded during the meeting: "My policy is that singing should be allowed throughout the entire Temple Mount."
It comes after the far-right minister took part in a prayer service at the Mount during Jerusalem Day celebrations.
Accompanied by party colleagues Yitzhak Wasserlauf and Yitzhak Kroizer, he said: “Today, thank God, it is possible to pray on the Temple Mount, to bow down on the Temple Mount — we thank God for that.”
Krozier was later pictured prostrating himself alongside several others in view of police officers.
Meanwhile, Zvi Sukkot, an MK for the far-right Religious Zionism party, reportedly walked across the site waving an Israeli flag and saying: “The Temple Mount is in our hands.”
But Ben-Gvir’s approach could put him in conflict with his coalition colleagues, with the Prime Minister’s Office confirming after his Jerusalem Day visit that “Israel’s policy concerning the Temple Mount has not changed”.
