(JNS) Israel’s Supreme Court, sitting as the High Court of Justice, on Sunday night approved the Israel Defense Forces’ Home Front Command outline to increase the quota of worshippers at the Western Wall from 50 to 100, following a hearing held earlier in the day in light of the war with Iran and the risk that it poses to gatherings across Israel.
The court scheduled an additional hearing on the grounds that the issue “has not been fully exhausted,” according to Ynet.

The court further asked the government to explain why protective measures have not been implemented at the holy sites to ensure a balance between security needs and freedom of religion.

According to an outline prepared by the Israel Police, a quota of 150 worshippers for the Temple Mount, as well as at the Western Wall, was handed to the court but it has not been approved, the report read.

The Home Front Command noted at the hearing that there are only two protected spaces near the Western Wall, which can host up to 100 people in total.

The court’s approval followed its decision the previous day, which instructed the military to permit an anti-war protest on Saturday night in Tel Aviv of up to 650 people, for the time being leaving limitations on other gatherings nationwide in place.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took to X to call the court’s initial decision “Unbelievable. While Jews are restricted during the holiday from praying at the Western Wall, the High Court of Justice has approved a left-wing demonstration in Tel Aviv. Freedom of protest is important, but freedom of prayer is no less important. During wartime, the only authority determining security arrangements is the Home Front Command.”

The court’s instruction regarding the demonstration triggered an outpour of criticism.

Flout the court’s decision?

Justice Minister Yariv Levin requested to convene Cabinet members to instruct the police to flout the court’s decision and maintain the Home Front Command restrictions on the permitted quota of protesters.

“I believe the Cabinet has no choice but to act to prevent the very clear danger to human life and public safety,” Levin wrote in a letter, according to Walla News. “In light of the exceptional importance of the matter, and its implications not only for saving lives but for the [military] campaign overall, I believe a proposal for a decision on this issue should be brought before the Cabinet.”

Rabbi David Yosef, the Sephardic chief rabbi of Israel, criticized the judges as well, saying, “They are acting recklessly and trampling the tradition of Israel,” per Ynet.

“This is an unlawful act in the Jewish state. These judges sit on the Sabbath and trample the law, and compel the state to respond contrary to the law,” he continued.

Yosef said the judges’ “one-sidedness” is causing religious Jews to lose trust in the High Court.

The court’s ruling on Saturday came in response to a petition to permit the protest in Tel Aviv. Emergency petitions were filed as a response the following day regarding the restrictive quotas for worshippers at holy sites.

During the hearing on April 5, Supreme Court President Yitzhak Amit was quoted as saying: “It is clear that everything is a matter of balance, and there is a difference between Habima Square’s parking lot and the Western Wall plaza. There is no doubt that freedom of religion and worship is important. I watched the live broadcast of the Priestly Blessing, and it was embarrassing to see the Western Wall—the very soul of the Jewish people—standing empty.”

The parking lot near the location of the protest is a four-story underground complex that also serves as a public bomb shelter capable of holding roughly 2,000 people.

Since the start of the war against Iran on Feb. 28, the Islamic Republic has fired more than a thousand missiles at the Jewish state. Hezbollah in Lebanon has also fired hundreds of rockets and missiles at Israel, prompting the Home Front Command to implement restrictions on public gatherings nationwide.