(August 27, 2024 / JNS) The Israeli government will finance Jewish educational tours on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount for the first time, “to strengthen and stabilize the Old City,” Israel’s Kan public broadcaster reported on Monday night.

A total of 2 million shekels ($543,338) will be allocated for the program from the budget of the office of Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyah of the Otzma Yehudit Party.

The Prime Minister's office clarified that “there is no change in the status quo on the Temple Mount.”

The Palestinian Authority condemned the reported plan, saying it could “lead to an explosion.”

The tours are expected to start in the coming weeks, after the holiday period, according to Kan.

“Following the government’s decision, the Heritage Ministry intends to launch guided tours of the Temple Mount, which will allow for the first time tens of thousands of Jews and hundreds of thousands of tourists who ascend the Mount every year to hear about the Jewish heritage of the Mount in an accurate historical version, free of alternative facts and Palestinian narratives written to promote an anti-Israeli and anti-Jewish agenda,” the ministry said.

“The operation of the guided tours will take place with permission and authority, [having] received the approval of all the relevant parties [and] passed a legal tender committee, and will be done in coordination with the Israel Police,” it continued.