As the Jewish High Holidays approach, Knesset Constitution Committee Chairman Simcha Rothman submitted an urgent request Wednesday to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, asking them to permit shofar blowing and Jewish prayer on the Temple Mount during Rosh Hashana.
In his letter, Rothman emphasized two issues he described as critically important for the upcoming holiday. “Blowing the shofar on Rosh Hashanah is one of the most central and important commandments of the holiday,” he wrote. “The inability to blow the shofar on the Temple Mount on this day constitutes a significant infringement on the public’s ability to fulfill this commandment at the site most sacred to it.”
Rothman also highlighted that opening the Temple Mount for Musaf (additional) prayers on the first day of Rosh Hashanah—which falls on Shabbat this year—would provide “a rare opportunity for the broader public to come and pray at the holy site on a major holiday.” He argued that restricting access on this day prevents many Jews from exercising their right to pray at the most important site for the Jewish people.
AFSI Insight
AFSI strongly supports opening the Temple Mount to Jewish prayer and shofar blowing on Rosh Hashanah. It is long overdue for Jews to be able to worship at Judaism’s holiest site—especially on one of the most sacred days of the Jewish calendar. There was never a legitimate reason to bar Jews from praying on the Temple Mount, and Israel should not allow outdated restrictions or pressure from others to dictate Jewish religious rights at Judaism’s most sacred and important holy site.
Source:
Call to Open Temple Mount for Rosh Hashanah, by Gila Isaacson/JFeed, August 26, 2026