The Mughrabi Gate, located just above the Western Wall in Jerusalem, is the only entrance to the Temple Mount for non-Muslim tourists. After the collapse of the earthern ramp in 2004, a wooden bridge was erected as a temporary solution until a new and safer bridge could be built to replace the old dirt ramp. We reported on this problem in previous posts here, here, here and here.
The Jerusalem Post reported today that:
The Jerusalem City Engineer sent a strongly worded letter to the Western Wall Heritage Fund on Sunday, stating that the temporary bridge to the Mughrabi Gate must be destroyed within two weeks, or the city will tear it down.
His reasons were that the structure had become “hazardous due to deteriorating physical conditions”. The fragility of the temporary bridge is evident from this picture:
“The municipality said that since the [Western wall] heritage fund received the necessary permits in March to build a replacement bridge, there is no reason to continue using the old bridge.”
The political ramifications, however, are such that nothing will probably done for a long time to come, which is good news for the many tourists that visit the Temple Mount every day.
is it 2 weeks? …
supposed to be …