Speaker of the Knesset

Transcription

For me, this was a very moving Aliya. It was entirely a matter of sovereignty. It was an Aliya which clarified that it's possible to ascend, it's possible to restore to ourselves full sovereignty on the Mount, with calm and security, the Israel Police performed their duties faithfully and proved that it is quite capable and the feeling is that through this Aliya today we laid a stone or two in the building of the Holy Temple MF to Police Commander Avi Biton: You know what these stones are... this is the upper portion of the original western wall. Herod also expanded on the western side... this (over here) is the extension, and this is the original wall of the Temple Mount of King Solomon. We're walking now on the wall, Herod extended also on the western side, also the southern side, Al Aksa itself is found in the Herodian extension, one can say that that part is not actually Har Habayit, he extended south, west, and northwards in the bedrock of the mountain, in the east is the original wall from the time of King Solomon. We are coming up to the Festival of Passover, the festive pilgrims emerged from here, from underneath the Hulda Gates in the south, and they entered from here to slaughter the Passover offering, which could be slaughtered anywhere in the sanctified courtyard, as we mention each morning in our morning prayers, the Passover offering may be slaughtered anywhere within the court, The commandment of the Passover offering is exactly equal to the commandment of circumcision, the Passover offering is the "national circumcision" and is an obligation upon each and every Jew just like circumcision... with G-d's help we will bring the Passover offering this very year. The Passover offering may also be brought under the current circumstances... even before we build the Holy Temple. From this point we can already see the cohanim standing at the entrance to the Sanctuary, they face the east, the daily tamid offering was already brought at sunrise, upon the altar which is situated more or less in this area... "cohanim at their Divine service and Levites in song and praise" (from the holidayprayers)... with G-d's help, may we merit to this speedily. We are here, literally at the (place of) the entrance to the Sanctuary, the location of the Holy of Holies, the place that G-d chose to rest His presence. Jews are prevented from entering into the Dome of the Rock... this is known as an area under Islamic sovereignty according to the current definition, even the police are forbidden from entering inside, G-d willing we will return the nation of Israel's sovereignty to this holy place, it will be exclusively under Israeli sovereignty, under the exclusive supervision of the Israeli police, with no other force or representative of any other sovereignty. The Dome of the Rock is called so, for that is what it is. The Dome of the Rock is not a mosque, the mosque is the Al Aksa Mosque which is located on the southern side of the Mount, when the Arabs pray they pray towards the south; when the Jews pray they pray towards this place, the Dome of the Rock is called so because it covers over the rock, the Foundation Stone, the place of the Holy of Holies, the mountain to which Abraham journeyed for the binding of Isaac, the site where the First and Second Temples stood, the place where with G-d's help, speedily, the Third Temple will stand, the place from where will go forth the good news of the rectification of the world in the Kingdom of G-d, for the nation of Israel and for the entire world.