The High Court of Justice on Wednesday ordered the state to respond by May 11 to a petition claiming that the government cut a deal with Jordan to keep Jews off the Temple Mount for the duration of the coronavirus epidemic.
According to Yehuda Etzion and journalist Arnon Segal, represented by right-wing activist Itamar Ben-Gvir, the government cut a secret deal with Jordan to keep both Arabs and Jews off of the Temple Mount during the crisis.
Many religious sites around the world were temporarily closed due to the pandemic.
However, the (Jerusalem) Wakf Islamic religious trust, instituted by Jordan after Israel’s War of Independence, eventually was allowed on the Temple Mount, while Jews are still banned, the petitioners said. Banning Jews while allowing Arabs was unconstitutional, they said.
Furthermore, banning Segal was a violation of freedom of the press, they added.
Justice Daphna Barak-Erez directed the state to respond to the allegations by next Monday.
In normal times, there are limits on where Jews can be on the Temple Mount and what activities they may undertake. But a complete ban would be unusual other than for a very limited period when there is a spike in security incidents related to the holy sight.