Within less than one hour on Tuesday morning, approximately 800 Jewish worshipers ascended the Temple Mount to attend Tisha B'av prayers at the site of the destroyed Holy Temples.
Under Israeli policy Temple Mount is open to Muslims every day - and is often the site of both violence and incitement to murder Jews. The site is only rarely open to Jewish visitors.
Due to the crowds, the police increased the number of pilgrims in each group, and allowed multiple groups to ascend at the same time.
As a result, the wait times to ascend the Temple Mount were shorter Tuesday morning than they have been in the past several years, despite the the higher-than-usual number of pilgrims.
Rabbi Shimshon Elbaum, head of the Temple Mount Administration, said, "It is moving to see the nation of Israel returning to the Temple Mount. Thanks to the pilgrims, Zion is no longer desolate."
"We thank National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and the Jerusalem police under the command of Brigadier-General Amir Arzani. Come and ascend."
The Temple Mount is open to Jews on Tuesday between the hours of 7:00a.m. and 11:30a.m., and from 1:30p.m. until 2:45p.m.