Donald Trump becomes the first sitting American president to visit Jerusalem's Western Wall

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[h=2]Donald Trump becomes the first sitting American president to visit Jerusalem's Western Wall as he joins Melania, his Jewish son-in-law Jared and Ivanka in praying at the holy site[/h]

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Donald Trump on Monday became the first sitting U.S. president to visit the holiest site where Jews can pray – and he left a prayer note there in accordance with Jewish custom. Melania Trump and Ivanka Trump prayed in the gender-segregated 'women's section' of the wall. Jared Kushner led a group of senior aides to offer their own prayers, including White House chief economic adviser Gary Cohn, National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

 

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[h=1]Trump becomes first sitting U.S. president to visit Jerusalem's Western Wall as he and Jared stop to pray at Judaism's holiest site[/h]

• Donald Trump prayed at Jerusalem's Western Wall on Monday, slipping a prayer note between the stones
• Melania, Ivanka and Jared all took their turns praying at the wall that originally supported the Temple Mount in the first century B.C.
• Trump wore a navy suit, a red tie and a black skullcap
• Barack Obama visited the Western Wall in 2008, when he was a presidential candidate; the note he left behind was stolen and later published

 

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Donald Trump on Monday became the first sitting U.S. president to visit the Western Wall – the holiest site where Jews can pray – and left a prayer note there in accordance with Jewish custom.
Located in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, the Western Wall is a section of one of four original retaining walls King Herod built in the first century B.C. to support the Temple Mount.
It is also the only remaining portion of the Second Jewish Temple, which stood in Jerusalem until the Romans destroyed it in 70 A.D. as they put down a Jewish revolt.
It has been U.S. policy for the last 50 years to not recognize East Jerusalem as part of Israel, making a visit to the wall a political minefield.
But Trump, clad in a navy suit, red striped tie and black kippah, strode into the Western Wall Prayer Plaza in Jerusalem's Old City on Monday before placing his hand on the stone wall and praying for 30 seconds, slipping a note inside a crack between the stones.

 

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Donald Trump on Monday became the first sitting U.S. president to visit the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest place of prayer

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Trump heard a lesson about the site's significance from Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz (center right) and Mordechai Elias (center left), who leads the Western Wall Heritage Foundation

Shmuel Rabinovich, the Rabbi of the Western Wall, led the president and his son-in-law Jared Kushner through a brief lesson about the location's significance while first lady Melania Trump and daughter Ivanka Trump looked on.
Jared later followed his father-in-law to the wall while the Rabbi's wife accompanied Ivanka and Melania to the 'women's prayer section' nearby, in keeping with the gender-segregated Orthodox custom.
Ivanka closed her eyes and said her own prayer. The first lady placed her hand on the wall and slipped a note between the stones.
Kushner prayed alongside White House chief economic adviser Gary Cohn, National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.
Afterward, President Trump stood in the plaza and read a section of Psalms with the rabbi, joined by Mordechai Elias, the director general of the Western Wall Heritage Foundation.

 

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Melania Trump offered her own prayer at the sex-segregated 'women's section' of the wall; like her husband, the first lady slipped a prayer note between the stones

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Ivanka Trump wrote on Twitter: 'It was deeply meaningful to visit the holiest site of my faith and to leave a note of prayer'

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Ivanka Trump, who converted to Orthodox Judaism before marrying Jared Kushner, stood in prayer after the president was done

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The White House has not yet said what the president or first lady wrote on the prayer notes they left at the Western Wall

 

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After the visit, President Trump read a section of Psalms with the rabbi, joined by Mordechai Elias, the director general of the Western Wall Heritage Foundation

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The women as they left the Western Wall after their visit. The wall is known as Judaism's holiest prayer site

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President Trump left a note at the Western Wall in accordance with Jewish custom. Press secretary Sean Spicer told a pool reporter that he would find out what the note said

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The day before her trip to the Western Wall, Ivanka Trump met with Saudi Arabian women to talk about their vision for the future

 

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Trump is in the midst of a nine-day trip, the first international journey of his presidency, visiting places that are significant to Muslims, Jews and Christians

 

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[h=3]WHAT IS THE WESTERN WALL?[/h]

• The Western Wall, also known as the Wailing Wall, is considered the holiest site where Jews can pray
• The limestone structure located in Jerusalem, is the only remaining portion of the Second Jewish Temple which was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D.
• The wall was erected in 19 BCE by King Herod who built it to support the Temple Mount, a hill which is considered the 'holiest site' in Judaism, but also a significant religious site for Christians and Muslims
• It is customary for Jews who visit the site to insert written prayers into the cracks of the wall
• The length of the wall is a subject of contention between Jews and Palestinians, who believe it is called the 'Wailing Wall' and is 58 meters (191 ft)
• However, Israel insists on calling it 'the Western Wall' whose length is 485 meters (1591 ft) which includes the entire retaining wall of the Temple Mount
• The 'Wailing-place' was a translation of El-Mabka, or 'the Place of Weeping,' the traditional Arabic term for the wall
• The term was introduced by the British after their conquest of Jerusalem from the Turks in 1917
• The name refers to the practice of Jews weeping at the site over the destruction of the Temples

 

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Barack Obama visited the Western Wall in 2008, when he was a presidential candidate.
The note he left behind was stolen and later published.
'Lord,' it read, 'protect my family and me. Forgive me my sins, and help me guard against pride and despair. Give me the wisdom to do what is right and just. And make me an instrument of your will.'
The White House has not said what Trump wrote on his own prayer note, but press secretary Sean Spicer told a pool reporter that he would find out.
Jewish Israelis see the entirety of Jerusalem as their 3,000-year-old capital. Old Testament scripture teaches that King David made Jerusalem the capital of a unified kingdom of Israel about 1,000 years before the birth of Christ.
But Palestinians, who are about one-third of modern Jerusalem's residents, claim East Jerusalem as the capital of a yet-to-be-recognized Palestinian nation.

 

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Barack Obama visited the Western Wall in 2008, when he was a presidential candidate, guided by the same Rabbi who helped Trump; the note Obama left behind was stolen and published

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Jared Kushner (right) prayed alongside Secretary of State Rex Tillerson (left) at the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old city

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White House staff and officials prayed at the wall on the historic trip. The president will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday

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President Trump prayed at the wall for approximately 30 seconds before leaving his note of prayer

 

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It has been U.S. policy for the last 50 years to not recognize East Jerusalem as part of Israel, making a visit to the wall a political minefield, but Trump took the risk

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The White House said last week that Trump would go to the Western Wall without any Israeli politicians in tow. Netanyahu had asked to join the visit

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The president will meet with Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday morning and will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday evening

 

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East Jerusalem is also home to al-Aqsa mosque, which is Islam's third-holiest site. The other two, mosques in Mecca and Medina, are both part of modern-day Saudi Arabia.
According to the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv, Muslims refer to the Western Wall as the 'Buraq Wall' because they believe the Prophet Muhammed tied his winged horse, named 'Buraq,' to the wall during the Prophet's Night of Ascension.
Trump's visit to Israel and the West Bank is meant as a peace overture, and the White House has been careful not to appear partisan in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The president is meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday evening, and with Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday morning.
The White House said last week that Trump would go to the Western Wall without any Israeli politicians in tow. Netanyahu had asked to join the visit.

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Earlier Monday, Ivanka Trump expressed her excitement about visiting Israel following what she called an 'amazing and historic' trip to Saudi Arabia

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For the last 50 years it had been US policy to not recognize East Jerusalem as part of Israel. Rex Tillerson told reporters 'The wall is part of Jerusalem' when asked if he agreed with United Nations Nikki Haley who said it was part of Israel

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From left to right: Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, White House senior adviser Jared Kushner, National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster and chief economic advisor Gary Cohn leave notes at the Western Wall

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President Trump talks with Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz at the Western Wall Monday afternoon

 

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The White House has been careful not to appear partisan in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

 

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A LOT OF LOVE: Donald Trump said Monday that Iran's belligerence and nuclear ambitions have created a chance for a common purpose among Arabs and Jews, laying the groundwork for a new Middle East peace framework

 

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Netanyahu declared his country's relationship with the US was stronger than ever

 

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Trump (pictured with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin) had earlier asked Netanyahu whether he was allowed to pose for photos as they strolled past dignitaries and politicians, to which the prime minister threw up his hands and replied: 'Who knows?'

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Trump promised to move the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem while campaigning for president last year

 

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The bizarre incident came as Netanyahu declared his country's relationship with the US was stronger than ever

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President Trump (pictured alighting Air Force One with Melania) arrived in Israel to much pomp and fanfare on his two-day visit to Israeli and Palestinian territories

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Trump (pictured at Ben-Gurion airport today) had earlier hailed the two countries' 'unbreakable bond' and vowed to secure the 'ultimate' Middle East peace deal

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Dignitaries and Israeli officials lined the red carpet for President Trump's much anticipated arrival

 

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Major Woody, San Francisco, United States, 5 hours ago
The majority of America is behind you President Trump.

 

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Alexandra12, Chicago, United States, 6 hours ago
That's our president - making friends all over the world. Go Trump!

 

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DanCinBees, Charlotte, United States, 6 hours ago
It is so comical to read the liberal comments, Trump is criticized by you all no matter what he does.