A delegation led by the brothers Abraham and Menachem Lubinsky, the founders of the Mount of Olives advocacy group International Committee for Har HaZeitim (ICHH) arrived in Israel from the US this week to sign the agreement that would see a visitors center built on the ancient site.

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"The center, which will be built 12 years after the founding of the ICHH, will include an information center, a synagogue, educational training center, library, two auditoriums, observation post, and much more," the ICHH said in a statement.

At the signing of the agreement, Minister of Jerusalem Affairs and Heritage Ze'ev Elkin said: "The connection to Jerusalem begins here on the Mount of Olives ... The Ministry of Jerusalem and Heritage, under my leadership, is investing significant resources in the development of the Mount of Olives, both in the visitors center and regular activities during the year which we promote.   The more people who come, the more security and preservation there is."

Jerusalem Mayor, Moshe Leon, said at the signing of the Agreement that "we now have the opportunity to realize your dream.  You mobilized the government and many others and together with our municipality, we are ready to go ahead." Abraham Lubinsky said that  "together we are going to build a visitors center and we look forward to working with the government in order to complete the construction as quickly as possible". His brother Menachem Lubinsky, said, "We were like dreamers; who would have thought that such a Center would be built for use on the Mount of Olives.  I wish that thousands of Jews will come daily to the Mount of Olives and know and be familiar with this great historic property."

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Shalom Lerner, Executive Director of the International Committee for Har Hazeitim (ICHH) announced today that two members of the American board of the CHH arrived in Israel for an intensive tour to advance the activities of the organization, which is an advocacy group aimed at developing and security the Mount of Olives.

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"The two dignitaries, Mr. Dov Fishoff, a leading American businessman, and Dr. Paul Rosenstock, a well-known medical doctor, serve on the American board of ICHH since its inception 12 years ago," the ICHH said in a statement on Sunday. "On this visit, they were given a comprehensive update on the building of the visitors center and learned first-hand about issues concerning safety and security measures. They also made a comprehensive tour of the mountain starting on the bottom of the mountain by Ras-el-Amud where the visitors center will be built and ending at the top where the Seven Arches Hotel is situated. The three-hour tour included many of the more isolated spots and those that are hard to reach. As part of the tour, they drove through the A-Tur neighborhood where several rock-throwing incidents have occurred in the past several months."

The two also met with the Knesseth Caucus for Har HaZeitim, where they noted the crucial importance of the safety of all access roads leading to the site, one of the most famous and oldest Jewish cemeteries on earth, and thanked the MK's for all they are doing for Har HaZeitim.

Head of the Har HaZeitim Caucus, Mk Michael Malkieli, responded that the holy work that members of the committee undertake and the time and money they are devoting to this holy mountain is an inspiration to the Members of the Knesseth who will double their efforts and work for Har HaZeitim.

"MK's HaRav Pinduras, Avi Maoz, Yoav Kisch, Gadi Yebrekan, committed themselves to ensure regular and stable public transportation to Har HaZeitimm," the statement read.

Mr. Fishoff and Dr. Rosenstock met with Municipal Officials in charge of the building of the visitor center and discussed the upcoming stages which include
a tender being held for the first stage of the building of the Center

The anticipated cost to construct the center is NIS 20,000,000 ($6.5 million).

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The program director of the Orthodox Union Israel Center Rabbi Sam Shor, and Shalom Lerner, the executive director of the International Committee for Har HaZeitim, announced this week a joint project encouraging the general public to tour Har HaZeitim (Mount of Olives).

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The program will feature periodic tours of the ancient burial ground, with each emphasizing a different theme or period of time in Jewish history and honoring the more than 158,000 Jews for whom the cemetery is their eternal resting place.

The initial pilot tour was a great success, according to Rabbi Shor, and was a special outing of OU Israel's The Bais-Men's Bet Midrash program with an emphasis on visiting and praying at some of the most revered rabbis' burial sites.

"We are very proud to be partnered with Shalom Lerner and the dedicated team at the International Committee for Har HaZeitim and be able to offer opportunities for Jews from across the world to connect to our roots and literally walk in the footsteps of generations of the Jewish people, to connect with our greatest rabbis, leaders, and heroes, and to encourage and support all those working to restore and maintain this sacred heritage site," Rabbi Sam Shor said. "This pilot trip will hopefully serve as a model of many subsequent group visits and form the basis for individuals to feel comfortable to visit as well."

Shalom Lerner made a point of underscoring that the foremost priority of the ICHH is that Jews should be able to visit, pray, and tour this holy site without fear.

"We are in constant contact with the police and government officials to ensure that the roads to the mountain and the mountain itself is secured at all times. We are putting special emphasis on bringing as many people as possible to the Mountain. In addition to the group tours, we will be facilitating visits for families and individuals. We are very grateful to Rabbi Shor and the OU Israel for partnering with us and together we will bring Har HaZeitim to the holy status it deserves," he said in a statement.

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A delegation from the International and Israel Committee for Har Hazeitim (ICHH) met with Housing and Jerusalem Affairs Minister Ze'ev Elkin this week to discuss the recent efforts to secure the old cemetery on the Mount of Olives.

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The delegation, led by Executive Director of ICHH Shalom Lerner, met with Moriah Chalamish, who is Elkin's chief of staff to Minister Elkin, as well as with Netanel Izak, the executive director of the Ministry of Jerusalem Affairs and Heritage, and Yom Tov Goren, adviser to the minister.

Also in attendance were Izzy Lerer, chief security officer for the Ministry of Housing, and Micha Marsh, who is in charge of security in east Jerusalem.

"Both of them jointly gave a comprehensive overview of the security situation on Har Hazeitim (Mount of Olives)," the ICHH said in a statement. "Mr. Marsh pointed out that there was a 24-hour watch on the mountain via security cameras and security patrols. They also reported that in the last 5 years, there have been almost no cases of vandalism on the mountain," the statement continued.

According to the organization, following the meeting, "it was decided to continue the dialogue with a tour of the mountain led by Mr. Marsh followed by checking avenues for further improving the security situation."

Members of the delegation noted that in the past there had been many public events held on the mountain and that the ICHH was planning several both large and smaller-scale public events if they will receive the Ministry's help.

Additionally, Lerner reported that a tour will be held on Har Hazeitim in two weeks amid the ongoing efforts to raise money for the visitors center. To conclude the meeting, Mr. Lerner said "Har Hazeitim has found true friends in these ministries."

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A rock-throwing attack that took place close to the Mount of Olives while MK Orbach was nearby prompted a reaction from the Yamina lawmaker.

"I and the whole Yamina faction are committed that all Jews coming to the mountain are fully protected before, during and after their visit. We will work closely with the International Committee for Har Hazeitim (ICHH) to ensure that all necessary steps are taken by the appropriate authorities," he said, referring to the mountain by its Hebrew name.

Menachem Lubinsky, who heads the ICHH  with his brother Avraham said, "We are closely monitoring the situation and keeping watch to ensure there is no spillover "

The incident on Thursday took place while Shalom Lerner, who is the international director of ICHH, toured the mountain together with Orbach. They had a joint meeting with new police chief of the area, Inspector Fahdi Genam, who briefed them on the ongoing security situation. Toward the end of their meeting, the officer received a call informing him of rock-throwing by Arabs and quickly went to deal with the situation.

Orbach will be joining the new Knesset caucus advocating for issues pertaining to the mountain. It is expected to be the largest caucus in the Knesset.

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Twice a year, Rabinovitch oversees the collection of thousands of notes to ensure there's always room for more. The papers are then buried on Jerusalem's Mount of Olives in accordance with ritual.

Workers dug out thousands of crumbled notes ahead of Rosh Hashana, which begins this coming Sunday.

The post In twice-yearly ritual, notes cleared out of Western Wall appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.