Western Wall cleared of 'notes to God' ahead of Jewish new year

Tens of thousands of prayer notes were removed from the Western Wall in Jerusalem on Sunday (September 15) in a ritual clearing ahead of the Jewish new year. Jewish worshippers place their 'notes to God' into the cracks of the Western Wall, the holiest site in Judaism. Ahead of the new year holiday, in early October, known as Rosh Hashana, the prayers are taken out to make space for fresh notes of the new year. The pieces of paper are then buried alongside sacred texts at the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. Shmuel Rabinowitz, the rabbi of the Western Wall and holy sites, said this year's notes were "saturated with tears". "Tears of bereaved families, tears of the wounded, tears of fighters, tears of hostages’ families," the rabbi said while overseeing the operation. The clearing of notes also happens ahead of the Jewish holiday Passover. (Production: Dedi Hayun, Lucy Marks, Lianne Back)