Haredi parties advance proposal to nix egalitarian section of Western Wall

Jeremy Sharon, Jerusalem Post

Image from article, with caption: Reform Jews pray at new Western Wall egalitarian section.

Excerpt:

United Torah Judaism [JB - see] and Shas [JB - see] are advancing a new government resolution to repeal the cabinet decision taken in January 2016 to create a state-recognized egalitarian section at the southern end of the Western Wall.

Implementation of the resolution was almost immediately frozen due to a backlash by the online haredi [JB: see] media and the chief rabbis against the deal, which led the haredi parties to step back from the agreement soon after it had been passed in cabinet. ...

Kulanu [JB - see] MK Rachel Azaria was also critical of the haredi proposal, saying it would cause severe harm to Israel’s relationship with US Jewry.

“This is unbecoming, because such things should not be done to your brothers, and they are our brothers,” averred Azaria.

“It will also cause strategic damage to the State of Israel. US Jewry stands up to defend us on campuses and against the Boycott Divestment Sanctions campaign and they are on the front lines of our public diplomacy campaign.

“Moreover, it is in the merit of US Jewry and their amazing activities that the US is our ally. That is why [US Ambassador to the UN] Niki Halley defends us in the UN, and why we have secured arms agreements for the most advanced weapons with the US, and why we have a superpower that stands by us. We must not lose US Jewry, and this proposal is a threat to this support.”