Chief Rabbis Reaffirm Ban on Jews Visiting the Temple Mount

Israel's chief rabbis, David Lau and Yitzhak Yosef, reaffirmed the religious prohibition on Jews visiting the Temple Mount, JTA reported on 3 December 2013. Their signed declaration repeated a position held by the Chief Rabbinate since the 1920s. Some Modern Orthodox rabbis permitted visits that avoided areas barred under Jewish purity law. The dispute concerned access to the site within Orthodox Judaism.