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Times for the commencement of the fast on Wednesday 26/07/2023:
- Jerusalem: 19:30
- Tel Aviv: 19:41
- Haifa: 19:41
- Tzfat: 19:40
- Be’er Sheva: 19:40
- Bnei Brak: 19:39
1,955 years since the destruction of the Temple.
Leading up to Tisha B’Av, the day on which we mourn the destruction of the two Temples – the First Temple and the Second Temple – as every year, the Western Wall Heritage Foundation is preparing for the streams of people who flow to the Western Wall, the remnant of the Temple, to read the Book of Lamentations (Megillat Eicha) and recite kinot (elegies) near the site of the destruction.
From Wednesday evening, the eve of Tisha B’Av, 26/07/23, until the following day late at night, Jews from all denominations and backgrounds will gather to observe this solemn day at the place that symbolizes the destruction. Tens of thousands will sit on the ground and lament the destruction of the House of G-d in various prayers and traditions, as befits this unifying site.
On Wednesday evening, the eve of Tisha B’Av, 26/07/23, the Western Wall Heritage Foundation will hold a reading of the Book of Lamentations and the recitation of kinot led by a cantor in the Sephardic tradition, Yehuda Naftali, and a cantor in the Ashkenazi tradition, Shlomo Glick.
The recitation of the kinot will be broadcast by the Western Wall Heritage Foundation starting at 21:30 on the Western Wall’s website, www.thekotel.org, for those who are unable to physically reach the Western Wall.
As the conclusion of the fast approaches
A moving spectacle takes place each year as the end of the fast approaches during the evening hours. Thousands of Jews from all backgrounds and sectors come together, shoulder to shoulder, singing emotional songs of comfort and redemption.
At the end of the fast, drinks and refreshments will be distributed at the Western Wall to those who completed the fast at the Western Wall Plaza.
The preparedness of the Western Wall Heritage Foundation will continue until the late hours of the night (around 2 am), when masses led by admorim, rabbis, and Torah scholars gather for the Kiddush Levanah ceremony which takes place at the conclusion of Tisha B’Av.
- First aid responders will be stationed throughout the day at the Western Wall Plaza to lend a hand and provide assistance to those in need.
- Private vehicles will not be allowed to enter the Old City and public transportation should be used instead.
The Western Wall Heritage Foundation asks the public to comply with the instructions of the Israeli police and the ushers.
Times for the conclusion of the fast on Thursday 27/07/2023:
- Jerusalem: 20:09
- Tel Aviv: 20:11
- Haifa: 20:11
- Tzfat: 20:10
- Be’er Sheva: 20:10
- Bnei Brak: 20:09
As every year on Tisha B’Av, tens of thousands of people come to the nearest location to the holy Temple, the Western Wall.
