US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman joined tens of thousands of worshippers at the Western Wall in Jerusalem Wednesday morning for the mass priestly blessing ceremony, known in Hebrew as ‘Birkat Kohanim’, during the Sukkot festival.

Speaking with Arutz Sheva, Friedman said the essence of the priestly blessing is a prayer for peace, and expressed hope that the prayers would be answered “in a land that people yearn for [peace] and deserve it.”

“It gets more and more exciting each time. This is my third Sukkot, I was here twice on Pesach [Passover]. It’s a great privilege as the ambassador to be treated to this lofty spot and to be able to see over the entire congregation of Israel, a 100,000 people. It is very exciting.”

“We pray for peace. I hope that our prayers are accepted in heaven and that we are able to bring peace in a land that people yearn for it and deserve it.”