Despite repeated promises by United Nations personnel that the Arabs in control of the Old City of Jerusalem would make arrangements for Jews to be admitted to the Holy Places there, not a single Jew was permitted to visit the Wailing Wall last night, on the eve of Tisha B’av. In pre-war years thousands of Jews from all over the country flocked to the Wailing Wall to recite the Lamentations, marking the destruction of the ancient Temple.
Meanwhile, the Arab authorities of the Old City have changed the name of the Jewish quarter there to the Mouidin — Fighters — quarter. Jews in this city, barred from the Wailing Wall, have assembled in dimly-lit synagogues to recite the Lamentations. Many American visitors attended the services.
All employees of the Israeli Government who are observing the Tisha B’av by fasting have officially been excused from work. The Knesset began meeting earlier this morning with the Speaker reciting verses from the Prophet Zacharias. Throughout the major cities of the land public places have been closed down and the synagogues are crowded.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
