419 Jews went up to the Temple Mount throughout Israel’s Independence Day to recite a number of special prayers for the State of Israel. The hundreds of pilgrims to the Temple Mount were given permission rather quickly, and recited the daily Jewish prayers on the mountain, something almost always forbidden by the local Jordanian Waqf which controls the Islamic sites on the compound. The worshippers arrived in large groups and were secured by the police who were organized with large and increased forces.

Many rabbis and yeshivas went up on the Temple Mount to give thanks to God on Israel’s Independence Day, among them Rabbi Israel Ariel, head of a yeshiva and the Temple Institute, Rabbi Haim Ozer Hait, head of Migdal HaTorah yeshiva, Rabbi Hebron Shilo, head of Otniel youth yeshiva, Rabbi Shmuel Moreno and Rabbi Yehoshua Friedman.

Access to the Temple Mount should be unrestricted. Would that be too much to ask?

The Palestinians say no at Jordan's request. pic.twitter.com/eC1zeQavNl

— RedBrasco - RedLehi (@redbrasco) April 26, 2023

Rabbi Shilo, who spoke while on the Temple Mount, said: "24 years ago I was privileged to go up to the Temple Mount for the first time. It was on Independence Day, and I was here alone with Rabbi Elvaim. The two of us alone were surrounded by four policemen and four other Waqf officers. It was forbidden to pray or study and recite the Torah. And here we are today On the 75th day of independence for the country, I had the privilege of going up here with a large group of people, and even saying a whole hymn in blessing and singing in the true courtyards of the House of God inside Jerusalem. Thanks to the ever-increasing stream of people ascending to the mountain, with God's help, we will soon be able to recite the prayers alongside the Levites in the Temple."

The Temple Mount administration welcomed the many pilgrims to the holiest site in Judaism with refreshments and congratulated them and the police for the increased preparation that prevented unnecessary disruptions before entering the Temple Mount.

Jewish and democratic states? Jews are arrested in their capital, Jerusalem, only because they they dare too raise the flag of Israel in the independence Day at the Temple Mount. https://t.co/ERJOWoAb97 pic.twitter.com/KDQqq95mDM

— nati rom נתי רום (@natirom) April 26, 2023

The Palestinian Authority condemned the display of Jewish gratitude on the Temple Mount and warned that the display of the Israeli flag and the prayers that the groups were saying were an attack on the sanctity of what they called an Islamic site. Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesperson for Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas accused Israel of “dragging the region into a square of violence, escalation, tension and instability through its insistence on continuing the policy of collective punishment, killing, assaults on al-Aqsa Mosque and settler terrorism.”

The ascension on Independence Day comes after Prime Minister Netanyahu ordered the Israeli security forces to close the Temple Mount for Jews during Passover and the last week of Ramadan amid fear of clashes between the Muslim and Jewish worshipers. For the past two weeks, only Muslims were allowed to enter the holy place, while Jews and tourists were not allowed to enter.

April 26, 2023
The Fifth Day of the Month of Iyar
Israel Independence Day
The Temple Mount in Jerusalem
👇 pic.twitter.com/m54VxymPCx

— Rabbi Berel Scharf (@ScharfBerel) April 26, 2023

Police preparations for Independence Day were completed and prepared for all possible scenarios. As part of the special police duty which began on the eve of Memorial Day, and continued until the end of Independence Day, there were a total of approximately 30,000 police officers, security forces, and volunteers on a variety of missions throughout the country.