What a pathetic world

Separation of religion from the State. Like in America!

Just like gays should not kiss etc in public places in Jerusalem so women of the Kotel should not put pray shawls and phylacteries on in public areas. I am all for women rights but one has to use the sense when it comes to religion and public things.

Hi Moshico, i am an open gay man, thanks on the guidelines on how to run our lives. Personally i do not belive in public shows of affection regardless of sexulaity. Would you also like to comment on Hetrosexuals who think nothing of groping eachother in public , shoving their tongues down eachothers throats in deep embrace or is your critism just reserved for gay people, i smell homophobia

Loooooosers........

the tunnel left to the Kotel is a synagogue, but the open place in front of the Kotel must be open to everybody independently of gender.

I totally understand the WOW not accepting the "compromise" offered to them. A better solution would be to split the public area in front of the Wall into Orthodox and non-Orthodox - and making small adjustments in a moving barrier between them based on crowd levels.

WoW are not fighting for mixed prayer sections, although this is a good thing. They want the right to read from the Torah and to wear the appropriate religious garb while doing so. But they are prevented from this because some Rabbis have decided that "exempted from" the requirement to do so is the same as "prohibited against" doing so. It is time for these religious leaders to actually read the text that they are misquoting and stop interpreting it as if this was the middle ages.

The Kotel is a religious site, not unlike the Church of the Holy Sepulcher or the Temple Mount.

All women, Jewish and Gentile, are welcome at the women's section of the Western Wall Plaza. Those women, however, who want to lein from a Sefer Torah are asked to do so at the third segment of the Western Wall, known as Robinson's Arch. This ruling was made by the Israeli Supreme Court, setting aside a section for WoW to 'do their own thing.' Judging by the men's area, the western wall PLaza is open to all men, including Popes John Paul and Benedict and Presidents Clinton and Obama . People pray as they see fit within basic etiquette such as dressing modestly -- as they would in a church, mosque or temple. WoW have turned the Wall into a media circus. Women donning tefillin and wrapping themselves in men's tallisos for the cameras is the opposite of modesty.

Loved the way the yeshiva chicks muscled them out of the way. WOW agreed to the deal and then tore it up. No sympathies for them. After the government provided them with a quick short-term solution they are still screaming. Not like the gov't doesn't have anything else to worry about. GO AWAY WOW - FO-EVA!

The Western Wall Plaza is the last wall of the Jerusalem Temple, and as such is a religious site just like Westminster Abbey, St Paul's or the Dome of the Rock. Separating church and state would not change the status of the Western Wall Plaza. I suspect that in California synagogues are also deemed to be religious rather than secular sites.

What they really need are Vibrators, the really high powered ones for the kind of energy they are really looking for... and are in desperate need of.

Yeah, you're all for women's rights, except if they do not agree with you. To the Women of the Wall:- go back to the courts, and get the judges to force the politicians to act as the court ordered.

The prayer area looks so far away, as if a desire to hide "misfits" is in play here. More importantly, most important actually, is that it is not smack up to the wall itself! How can they pray, touch and put in their notes? Looks insulting although I have not seen it.

in their daily prayers, why do they want to pray at the Temple outer wall remains? They are just provocateurs like femen

As so many go to dogmatic extremes to fulfill some "holy" ceremony, they (both men and women) have lost the very essence of true religion. Instead of an inner focus on one's own humble place in creation and appreciation of it, people choose to argue and fight over costumes, where to stand and what words exactly to say. Hey - try speaking unrehearsed words from your heart directly to our Creator from any place and at any time. Believe me, it feels good and has more real meaning than any ceremonial show of force or dogmatic devotion to blind prayer devoid of all humility. If we respected our humble place in creation, then maybe we would respect each other.

This is a good start whether Anat Hoffman appreciates this or not. If there is a momentum for change including a bevvy of Israeli Jews, male and female happy to visit and pray - (regularly?) there it will start a momentum that will inevitably lead - even if it takes another 25 years, for the whole wall to be properly "divided". Revolutions often start with a ripple - there is no need for a bloodbath - Don't be so mean spirited Anat - this is only the beginning!

in the same breath I can tell you men that you need to use deodorant, praying in the kotel without deodorant can be leathal and ultra orthodox men can really smell.

WOW is an anarchist feminist movement who believe that orthodox Judaism is oppressive toward women and they have made no secret the fact their mission is to tear down all institutions of orthodoxy in the country. They don't care about prayer , its a a front to help them look legitimate. They go out carry out to try get themselves arrested and try to provoke the religious try get them to react and if they can get them to react with violence then thats wonderful for WOW because next morning all the newspaper headlines are about poor old WOW victims of haredi persecution and violence or got arrested because they tried to challenge the orthodox system. WOW are no victims and whilst they might make the headlines they are a tiny group with just a limited following and they cannot afford to have a reformist prayer section because then their movement dies because if there is a place for people to go hold refoirm services then there is no justification anymore for them to gatecrash the plaza which is to remain the equivalent of an orthodox synagogue.

Succumbed to black hatted missfits again - You need a leaders not bennetts ,...

The number of Orthodox Jews in the world has skyrocketed in the last 50 years.

The article states, in part, that: "The Wall belongs to all Jews,” Hoffman told The Media Line. “You can’t take the keys to the holiest site of the Jewish people and hand it over to one extremist minority faction,” she said, It strikes me that the WOW contingent appears to be an extremist minority, no?

I just wonder why it is so important for the liberals to pray in front of the wall when they don't agree with what it represents, meaning sacrifices of animals. The liberals are making nonsense of most of the laws given by God at Sinai. As for the conservatives they are diluting Judaism. So it's hard for me to understand what the fight is about except for orthodox WOW who do have a point.

Where is the connection between WOW and the Kotel? World of Warcraft is a fictional universe. Why would they care?

I agree with you 100 % , as a proud Jewish gay man I find these comments homophobic and stupid , if two adults kiss in public is their business and its true that public affection regardless of sexual preferences is not tasteful ! Regarding where people may or may not pray it's unbelievable , we have so many enemies and still hav time to fight over such a petty issue , the Kotel belong to the people of Israel all of it not just the orthodox , thank you

Well, well. Anat Hoffman is angry. is it because she is so ignorant that she doesn't realize that everywhere along the wall has the same level of sanctity? Well, she's ignorant, but that is not why she is angry. She just hates the Orthodox and wants to make sure that THEY can't pray the way THEY want to!