Engineer: Western Wall embankment could collapse
By Nadav Shragai

The Jerusalem Municipality is demanding that an embankment leading from beside the Western Wall, via the Mughrabi Gate, to the Temple Mount be demolished immediately, for fear of its collapse.

The city engineer, Uri Shitrit, has demanded that the Western Wall Heritage Foundation and the police deal with the issue before the rainy season starts in earnest, in order to prevent casualties.

Shitrit said that he had approached all concerned several weeks ago but that nothing had been done. He noted that part of the embankment collapsed last February and that it was a miracle no one was hurt. Damage from last year's earthquake and snow had further contributed to the dangers, he said.

Shitrit said that the wall of the embankment is made up of stones and sand and held together by some sort of cement, with arches that give additional support. "The supporting wall is cracked, it is not straight and it is showing signs of collapse," he said. "Because of this, the embankment has started to give way and is likely to collapse when the heavy rains come."

The wall that collapsed last year has been fenced off, and part of the entrance to the Mughrabi Gate has been closed, but people continue to use this entrance to the Temple Mount. A few weeks ago, the cabinet approved NIS 5 million to build an alternate embankment from the Western Wall to the mount. The work has been held up for several reasons, including the fact that the Antiquities Authority has not completed excavation work there.

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