The National Union party called Friday for the public to come to historic Jerusalem on Saturday night to protect Jewish residents from Arab provocations. The public is invited to support Jewish families in the Shimon Hatzaddik neighborhood, immediately east of Highway 1, near the Tomb of Simon the Just.

NU Members of Knesset Yaakov “Ketzaleh” Katz, Aryeh Eldad, Uri Ariel and Michael Ben-Ari plan to visit the embattled residents themselves on Saturday after the Sabbath has ended.

"We won't leave these pioneers alone to face the violent protests of extreme anti-Zionist leftists and anarchists,” the MKs said. “We will all come on Saturday night to protect them.” The MKs will join residents of the neighborhood and other supporters in a prayer for Jerusalem's safety.

The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Arab residents of Shimon Hatzaddik and their supporters may hold a demonstration on Saturday night, despite violent outbursts during previous demonstrations. However, the court ruled that the demonstration should be held in a local basketball court, with only 300 people allowed to march through the streets of the mixed Jewish-Arab neighborhood.

Jerusalem Police had filed to put an end to the demonstrations in Shimon Hatzaddik, arguing that the demonstrations fan the flames of tension in an already “volatile” area, and that demonstrations in the streets compromise Jewish access to the Tomb of Simon the Just

At the end of Moslem Friday prayers at El Aksa, twenty policemen were hurt by rocks thrown by Arab worshippers. The police allowed everyone to leave the Temple Mount and were able to restore quiet. Five policemen needed medical treatment.