Cave of Patriarchs

IDF on high alert in Hebron as 20,000 Israelis expected for Shabbat amid terror attack fears

With 20,000 Israelis expected in Hebron for Shabbat Chayei Sarah, security forces are preparing for possible terror attacks and clashes, with drills simulating simultaneous emergencies.

|ByAMIR BOHBOT
Jews seen in the West Bank city of Hebron, during Shabbat Chayei Sarah celebrations, November 15, 2025. (Illustrative)
The image shows a clear glass photography sphere (or lensball) placed on a wooden bridge, refracting an inverted view of the trees and sky.

Parashat Vayera: Bridging heaven and earth

When we seek the higher values behind our everyday actions, daily life itself becomes a form of sacred service, allowing us to experience something of the Garden of Eden here on earth.

|ByRABBI SHMUEL RABINOWITZ
High Court Justice; illustrative.

High Court lifts freeze on NIS 78m. Religious Services funding, keeps broader freeze in place

The freeze stems from a petition challenging an August 4 Knesset Finance Committee meeting held during the election recess.

|BySARAH BEN-NUN
The Ibrahimi mosque or the Tomb of the Patriarchs, in the West Bank city of Hebron, July 3, 2024.

Foreign Ministry denies annulment of Hebron Agreement, contradicting Smotrich's announcement

Under the 1997 Hebron Agreement, the Hebron Municipality oversaw planning and construction across the city, including the Tomb of the Patriarchs and the adjoining Ibrahimi Mosque.

|ByMIRIAM SELA-EITAM

Female IDF soldier attacked by Jewish rioter in Hebron clashes

Hundreds of Jews reportedly began to march through Palestinian areas of Hebron flying Israeli flags.

NOVEMBER 19, 2022ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
Jews tour in the West Bank city of Hebron, after earlier clashes broke out between Jews and Palestinians, November 19, 2022.

Mufti slams Pence for ‘storming’ Tomb of the Patriarchs

Former US Vice President Mike Pence took a tour of Hebron, where he visited the Tomb of the Patriarchs.

MARCH 10, 2022ByKHALED ABU TOAMEH
US former Vice President Mike Pence sits for an onstage interview after his remarks on abortion, ahead of Supreme Court arguments in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization case involving a Mississippi abortion law, at the National Press Club in Washington, US, November 30, 2021.

Israel won't battle Biden over US return to UNESCO

Israel has no plans to oppose the US' return to UNESCO and doesn't plan to renew its own UNESCO membership.

FEBRUARY 9, 2022ByTOVAH LAZAROFF
A general view of the UNESCO headquarters in Paris

Israel's ties to Hebron undeniable, Herzog says at Cave of Patriarchs

Palestinians and Israeli left-wing politicians and activists protested the president's decision to visit the city.

NOVEMBER 28, 2021ByTOVAH LAZAROFF
President Isaac Herzog President Isaac Herzog lights a menorah on the first night of Hanukkah at the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron, November 28, 2021.

Palestinians, IDF clash in Hebron after Herzog's candle-lighting

Violence between Palestinians and IDF forces came after President Isaac Herzog lit the first Hanukkah candle at the Cave of the Patriarchs.

NOVEMBER 28, 2021ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
PALESTINIANS CLASH with Israeli soldiers in Hebron earlier this month.

President Isaac Herzog's controversial candle lighting

Herzog may have thought that lighting the first Hanukka candle in the Cave of the Patriarchs where Abraham, Sarah, Isaac and Jacob are buried, would be a symbolic act of unity.

NOVEMBER 25, 2021ByGREER FAY CASHMAN
Israeli President Isaac Herzog arrives outside Downing Street to meet Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson, in London, Britain, November 23, 2021.

Parashat Chayei Sarah: Learning how to converse

Every word and every sentence in the dialogues that appear in the parasha is there to teach us how to operate in a holy way.

OCTOBER 29, 2021ByRABBI SHMUEL RABINOWITZ
View of the Cave of the Patriarchs in the West Bank city of Hebron on December 2, 2020.

Hundreds of Israelis go to Cave of the Patriarchs with WZO for Slichot

Many also went to the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City for Slichot, abiding by government COVID-19 restrictions.

AUGUST 27, 2021ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
Hundreds of Israeli Jews are seen at the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron with WZO for Slichot, on August 26, 2021.

Palestinian Islamic council: Israel undermining foundations of al-Aqsa Mosque

The Palestinian Supreme Fatwa Council renewed a ban on selling properties to Jews and issued a series of statements decrying the "Judaization" of Palestinian and Islamic sites.

AUGUST 19, 2021ByKHALED ABU TOAMEH
The Al-Qibli Chapel, Part of Al-Aqsa Mosque, in the Old City of Jerusalem

IDF estimates Tomb of the Patriarchs elevator within six months

The project has been controversial both from an archaeology perspective and because of its intersection with the dynamics of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

AUGUST 9, 2021ByTOVAH LAZAROFF
View of the Cave of the Patriarchs in the West Bank city of Hebron on December 2, 2020.