Tension simmered in Hebron today after Jewish settlers and hasidim from Jerusalem violated a five-year-old order by the Defense Ministry prohibiting Jews from worshipping at the Tomb of the Patriarchs during hours designated for worship by the Moslem community. The Tomb is sacred to both faiths. Sheikh Mohammed All Jaabari, Mayor of Hebron, said last night that the violation amounted to a deliberate provocation of the Arab residents.
Last Friday a group of Orthodox settlers from the new Kiryat Arba quarter visited the Tomb although Friday is the Moslem Sabbath. On Saturday some 30 hasidim of the Karlyn sect in Jerusalem prayed at the Tomb in an area specifically designated for Moslem worshippers. On Saturday night another group from Kiryat Arba came in violation of the regulation barring Jews from prayer there after five P.M. In each case police ordered the violators away and they left without incident.
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