Hundreds of people in dozens of buses came this morning to Rachel's Tomb for the special prayers of the Ten Days of Repentance between Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur (inclusive). It was announced yesterday that the holy site, just a few hundred meters south of the municipal border of Jerusalem, will be included within the "Jerusalem envelope," i.e., it will be on the "Israeli" side of the security partition separating the city from some Arab-populated areas. One woman worshiper there today said, "I make sure to come here every Thursday - because we have to make it clear that it is ours; it must not end up like Kever Yosef [Joseph's Tomb] which we abandoned..."
Rachel's Tomb, which today is accessible only via scheduled bulletproof buses, will be enclosed within a compound surrounded by eight-meter high walls. A new access road from the Tunnels Highway on the west will be paved, bypassing the Arab homes on the one-kilometer-long current road leading from southern Jerusalem.
Despite objections by Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer and Opposition leader Yossi Sarid, Prime Minister Sharon said, "There is no question about it. Rachel's Tomb is part of Israel, it is precious to the Jewish nation, and it is inconceivable that Israelis will not have free access to it." Pushing hard to have Rachel's Tomb included within Jerusalem were MK Benny Elon, Minister Eli Yeshai, Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert, and others. Yeshai, visiting Rachel's Tomb today, said that the next step must be to ensure that Jews can worship at Joseph's Tomb in Shechem as well.