Rav Mordechai Eliyahu is famous for having been one of the students of the Baba Sali. He was considered the best of the students and is known to be a brilliant kabbalist, along with his other qualities.

(Rav Eliyahu should have a refuah shleimah)

There is a story that is clouded in mystery. Supposedly, before the Baba Sali's death, the Baba Sali gave to Rav Eliyahu a gold watch and told him that this is the watch of the mashiach. He supposedly said that when the watch would strike 12 the mashiach would come.

The watch was obviously not a regular watch and its hands did not move at the speed of a regular watch. Over the years, every once in a while, it would advance by some time.

Over the past few years, rumor has had it, that the watch, which remains locked up in a safe in Rav Eliyahu's home, had hit a minute to 12. If true, it is meant to be an indication that mashiach is close. But it stayed at 11:59 all this time and did not advance any further.

Rav Eliyahu has been sick and recuperating in the hospital recently. Reports now have it, or perhaps it is just rumors, that the watch has advanced to 12. In the article about it, some of the details are different than those I have heard over the years, but they are insignificant differences (such as I heard Baba Sali gave it to him but in the article linked it says Baba Sali's son gave it to him. I heard 11:59 and article says 11:55).

It is worth noting that Rav Shmuel Eliyahu says nobody has seen the watch recently and nobody dares to go check it out. They are waiting for the rav himself to feel better enough to go home and look at it himself. That being so, I do not know how rumors could have started that the watch has struck 12, if nobody saw the watch recently.

Halevai that the rumor should be true and the arrival of mashiach should be imminent!