Israel will do its “utmost so that Jews will be able to go everywhere safely, especially to the Tomb of the Patriarchs,” Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu told the Cabinet Sunday.
Tens of thousands of Jews visit the site, known, in Hebrew as Ma’arat HaMachpelah, for Slichot prayers between Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur.
It is the burial site of the forefathers Avraham, Isaac (Yitzchak) and Jacob as well as Sarah, Rebecca (Rivkah) and Leah. Rachel, Yaakov’s second wife, is buried at Rachel’s Tomb (Kever Rachel), which also attracts tens of thousands of people between the two High Holidays.
The Patriarch’s Cave also is the traditional burial place of Adam and Eve.
Palestinian Authority terrorists have escalated attacks at the two sites in recent months.