Day 673 - Haviv Rettig Gur: When Temple Mount prayer is a call to settle Gaza

The Times of Israel Daily Briefing

The Times of Israel

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4.4 • 864 Ratings

🗓️ 9 August 2025

⏱️ 38 minutes

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Summary

Welcome to What Matters Now, a weekly podcast exploring key issues currently shaping Israel and the Jewish World, with host Amanda Borschel-Dan speaking with ToI's senior analyst Haviv Rettig Gur.

During the Tisha B'Av fast on Sunday, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir again made headlines for going up to the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem. There were two big differences this time: One, he led a prayer service out loud, and two, he called for the Jewish resettlement of the Gaza Strip.

Both aspects of Ben Gvir's trip were highly documented, including his statement on the ongoing war in Gaza.

Ben Gvir said, “I am saying, davka [intentionally] from here, from the Temple Mount — the place from which it was proven that it is possible to have sovereign rule — davka from here, we are relaying a message that from today on, we are conquering the entire Gaza Strip, announcing our sovereignty on the entire Gaza Strip, and taking down every Hamas member and encouraging voluntary emigration. Only in this way will we return the hostages and win the war.”

Ben Gvir's semi-messianic vision may come partially true as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears poised to announce an IDF operation aimed at conquering the entire Gaza Strip.

Resettlement of the Palestinian enclave, says Rettig Gur, is a completely different matter.

We hear how this latest publicity stunt is a disservice to the Temple Mount movement, which stresses that Jews may have freedom of worship at Judaism's most holy site.

And so this week, we ask Haviv Rettig Gur, what matters now.

What Matters Now podcasts are available for download on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by the Pod-Waves.

IMAGE: Haviv Rettig Gur (courtesy) / Illustrative: Jews visit the Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City, on Jerusalem Day, May 26, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to the Times of Israel's What Matters Now.
0:04.4	I'm your host, Deputy Editor Amanda Borschal Dan, here with our senior analyst, Kaviv Retegur,
0:10.4	to talk about one issue facing Israel and the Jewish world right now.
0:15.2	Kaviv, thanks for joining me today.
0:17.0	Good to be here, Amanda.
0:18.5	It is always such a pleasure to have you, and we're recording a day after the Tishab of observance, which is a really difficult 24-hour fast for those who actually do that.
0:32.0	And despite the terrible summer heat, it's actually a little easier than Yom Kippur.
0:38.3	Do you know why, Kaviv? little easier than Yom Kippur. Do you know why,
0:46.4	Chaviv? Why it's easier than Kippur? No. Well, for one thing, at least in our household, those who observe the fast are basically watching movies all day long. And so you have the
0:52.3	opportunity to still use electricity, right, Kaviv?
0:56.3	Right. It's not a holiday in that sense. Yeah. No, I gave a, I gave actually a short talk at the local
1:02.3	synagogue and I drove there and read it off my phone. So I presumably I would have remembered that.
1:09.5	Yeah, no, it's a lot easier, and you can turn
1:11.3	air conditioning on and off, and yeah. But, you know, for me, it's such a spiritual moment, and I don't
1:17.6	notice the material things around me. I'm too busy feeling. Yes. The feelings. We all believe
1:23.8	you 100%. And no, I'm sure it's true.
1:34.7	But what I was going to say is that for those who do observe Tishabab and partake of electricity,
1:43.1	they would have been greeted around the world with international headlines and international media of our national security minister,
1:46.1	Itamar Ben-Gvier, atop the Temple Mount.
1:52.0	And it was kind of remarkable this time, because of course he goes up to the Temple Mount all the time, but this time was a little different for two reasons.
1:57.0	Do you know what they are, Kaviv? Another pop quiz for you.
1:59.9	He called for instituting Israeli sovereignty over the entirety of the Gaza Strip.
	...

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