The handful of rioters who desecrate the name of God must be condemned with all force. The Torah of Israel is the path of pleasantness and all its paths are peace. Their behavior has no place among us, they must be denounced and expelled from the camp. 

MK Miki Zohar (Likud) is proposing a law in light up the tiktokifada.

I honestly do not get what all this sudden violence, rioting, and rockets from Gaza is all about. I do not understand if they are connected or just a confluence of events with bad timing. Obviously, occupation and all that, but it was relatively quiet for a fairly significant amount of time and suddenly it exploded into a conflagration the likes of which we have not seen in a really long time.

I assume Minister of Internal Security Amir Ohana's words form after the Meron tragedy apply equally today.

Rav Chaim Kanievsky and Rav Gershon Edelstein have called on the Haredi community to avoid participation in any protests and definitely not to join with reckless people who use violence.

Back in the day people (myself included) used to comment on wild protests held by Jews and would say that the police should shoot, if they feel threatened, if things are getting out of control. Not to kill, but in the air, at legs or at property in a very bad situation. Just like they do at Arab protests. I remember when I went to Hebron, probably for the first time, as a yeshiva student, a soldier told me that they shoot at the tv antennas on the roofs and at the water tanks on the roofs if they need to get the Arabs under control because that means they need to spend money to fix and replace the damaged tanks and antennas. Once it costs them good money, especially more than once, it reins them in.

This was the scene in L.A. this morning following a night of looting in a predominantly Jewish neighborhood. Several businesses were destroyed and synagogues were defaced.

What's happening in the USA right now is very sad and disturbing

What's going on in the Ukraine is very disturbing. The human tragedy is horrible, and the increase, or maybe just the increase in it being more open, in anti-semitism, has the Jews fearing their fates more than others.

That being said, I find it humorous, and perhaps sad, that the Breslav community in Uman has found a reason on which to ascribe the bloody uprising. The Breslav community has said that what has happened is a punishment directly from the tzaddik Rebbe Nachman because of the attempt to prevent Jews from visiting the grave by considering to charge an entry fee. The prime minister himself had to run away from the country, and he personally had supported the idea of the entry fee.
source: Kooker

I gave up pointing out every time someone plays God's spokesperson, knows the reasons for this or that tragedy or tragic event. This one deserves mention. Because they considered charging an entry fee to Rebbe Nachmans grave complex, so dozens of people, Jews included, are being killed in an uprising? Couldnt the prime minister who supported it, or the minister who promoted it, have lost all their money as punishment? Maybe be caught in some criminal activity that would disgrace them and make them resign or got o jail - but the whole country has to undergo a bloody uprising because one stinking anti-semite minister wanted to charge an entry fee?

If someone feels compelled to give an explanation or reason behind any given event or tragedy that happens, I would really like to see that person employ some careful thought and analysis and make solid connections, rather than just throw out whatever issue is closest to that persons heart.

There is not anything really new or interesting about the rioting on the construction site in RBS yesterday in which 20 or 30 extremist-haredim associated with the Asra Kadisha were arrested.

It is part of a fight over whether or not there are ancient Jewish graves under the construction site or not. Rav Weiss and the Asra say there are, and construction is against halacha without making changes (changes that the Asra must be paid a lot of money to implement). Rav Shterbuch and Ertz Hachaim say that there are no ancient Jewish graves on the site and construction can begin, under supervision (for which Eretz Hachaim must be paid).

The owners, buyers and contractors are fed up with all the delays, and decided to authorize the Ertz Hachaim organization to make the final decision, thus leading to the start of construction. Asra supporters, upset at the decision, rioted and protests, sometimes violently.

Nothing new, and nothing all that interesting.

What does make the story interesting is a side incident.

Despite the people involved in the protests and opposition to construction all being anti-Zionists, that does not stop them from trying to use the Zionist institutions against the Zionists.

Moshe Friedman, a member of the Eida, filed a petition with the Supreme Court yesterday to try to get an injunction to stop work on the Goloventzitz construction site. According to Bechadrei, the appeal to the Supreme Court was filed by attorney Itamar Ben-Gvir.

In the appeal, Ben-Gvir claimed that there are a number of halachic solutions available to minimize or avoid damage to graves while allowing construction to continue. Israeli law requires everything possible to be done to avoid or minimize damage to graves.

So:
1. they are trying to use the Supreme Court in their favor, despite not recognizing the authority of the State or of the its courts an legal system
2. they hired attorney Itamar Ben-Gvir to do the work on their behalf. The Anti-Zionists using a far right wing Zionist (unless you believe the conspiracy theorists who claim he is really a Shabak agent) to use State resources.

That is interesting.

By now you have surely heard of what happened yesterday in Bet Shemesh with the Egged bus incident.. I know that most of the postings online in the news media is inaccurate, so I want to clarify what I can.

First, here is the Channel 2 news report on the incident.



More interesting is the article on Mako than the video clip:
Channel 2 news spoke with various parties and interests and here are their responses:

Deputy Mayor of Bet Shemesh Shmuel Greenberg:

There was no "hadarat nashim". the bus driver enflamed the incident. A woman got on the bus and asked another passenger to change places with her so she could sit near someone she knows. The woman agreed, but the driver then turned it into an incident and began to go crazy. He called the police who came and stopped the bus and arrested the man and woman. After the police arrived, haredi residents began to gather to the area and throw stones at the bus. "Maybe it is connected to elections. There is incitement because of the upcoming elections. That is the power of incitement."

Aliza Bloch, candidate for mayor, said:

We can not in any way give in to the extremists. Incidents like this must be dealt with with an iron hand, and we are obligated to uproot such violent behavior and take care that all residents of Bet Shemesh and Israel know that nobody is above the law.

Eli Cohen, candidate for mayor, said:

Again violence and incitement of the extremists against the general population in the city has returned. It is incomprehensible that the residents of Bet Shemesh should be afraid to go around the city freely. We will uproot this phenomenon.

MK Aliza Lavie (Yesh Atid) said:

I call upon the Haredi leadership to make its voice heard, to uproot from within it the rioters and make clear that there is no place for such behavior. If they do not do this, the situation can deteriorate to harming someone. We cannot give in to violence, and we cannot allow extremist groups to set how the public realm appears. I hope the police will punish the rioters to the extent of the law in order to prevent such incidents form happening again in the future.

Rabbi Uri Regev, director of Hiddush, said:

the unending violence on the segregated lines proves that they must be completely abolished and serious criminal sanctions must be placed on those who exclude women. Areas in Bet Shemesh have become centers of violent Haredi gangs and the time has come to begin to impose Israeli law there

MK Rav Dov Lipman (Yesh Atid) said:

Such events of excluding women are an invalid phenomenon that need to disappear from the world. Even in the Torah it was prohibited to degrade women and there is no place for this in Israeli society.

Egged Spokesman Ron Rettner said:

Egged completely condemns any attempt to force seating arrangements on buses, and any attempt to use violence, verbal or physical, against any passengers or the driver. We expect the Bet Shemesh police to locate the small group of rioters and use the full extent of the law against them in a way that will be a deterrent, that will uproot this unacceptable behavior.

Now for what I want to add.

With all those responses, I must say that I wonder where the mayor himself is. I did not hear or see any statement or comment on the incident by him. Is he out of town? Is there a reason he does not want to condemn the violence or condemn Egged or play it down or whatever? Where si the mayor's leadership or his activity to calm the waters?


Regardless of that...

The reports in the news spoke about an incident in which a woman got on the bus #497 - from Bet Shemesh to Bnei Braq, and sat in the front. A woman and a man told her to move to the back of the bus as it is a mehadrin bus. The police got involved, arrested the man and woman, and that led to the bus being stoned and then 2 other buses being attacked with windows smashed.

Last night I heard on Radio Kol Chai, while on my way to shiur (so I did not get to listen to the entire discussion with all the interviews), an interview with the woman involved - the one who was told to move to the back of the bus. She sounded like an olah chadasha, though her Hebrew was very good. I read elsewhere later that she moved to Israel from London and had recently been with her family on shlichut to the Ukraine..

Her name is Rachel Rosenfeld, she is 27 with two children. She is not charedi, but is Dati Leumi (in her words).

She said she got on the bus with her kids and some packages. She sat in the front. She is fairly new to Bet Shemesh and did not know that this is a mehadrin bus. A charedi woman came to her and told her to move to the back. She said no because it is too difficult - her kids, her bags, etc. The woman offered to help her move. A man spoke up as well. The woman agreed to move. At that point, against Egged policy (supposedly Egged policy is the bus driver does not get involved unless it seems like the situation will get violent), the bus driver intervened and started screaming about calling the police, and from there the situation deteriorated and the rioting began.

I don't know if that justifies anything that happened later (actually I know it does not), but it is good to get the story straight.

According to the victim, the initial story was turned into a mountain, when it was just a molehill. There was not a serious attempt at forcing a woman to the back of the bus - it was a polite request to which she had agreed.

We do not know the bus drivers version - maybe he saw them being more aggressive than what she is admitting to, maybe he perceived it differently than she did, or maybe he lost control. I don't know.

And, again, this does not justify rioting, violence, destruction of property, putting people into physical danger (thankfully only one person was hurt with only minor scrapes from the broken windows). The criticism on the violence that happened after the incident still stands.

Last week the police closed the Temple Mount off from access to Jews more than it was open. The Arabs on the Mount were making trouble for all sorts of reasons and threatening riots. On Friday they actually rioted and the Israel Police had to go in and quell the riots before they got out of hand. Instead of closing Har HaBayit to Arabs who riot, they continue to close it for Jews..

As you can see in the video, the police did not do much to quell the riots, and mostly backed down in the face of the Arab rioters. The Arabs mostly chased the police off the Mount. It is time for Israel to assert some authority. As long as a government is in place that declares the Temple Mount as the holiest site of the Jews, as Jerusalem being undivided, and all that jazz, there should be a Knesset inquiry into why and how the situation has gotten so out of control on Temple Mount, and what needs to be done to fix it.

Stamford Hill is a neighborhood in London. It is, according to Wikipedia, home to Europe's largest hassidic community. Stamford Hill is a small neighborhood in London's Borough of Hackney, which is a very short distance from Tottenham, the location where the London riots originated and are the highest concentrated. Many years ago I spent a couple of days based in Stamford Hill when I went to London.

As a matter of fact, many of the Jews of Stamford Hill have gone out, as spectators, to watch the action of the rioting and the police response. They have been caught on film running away when things got too hot.




No big deal. I am sure it was interesting to watch before things got too dangerous.

Regardless, back to the point, Stamford Hill is very close to Tottenham, and the hassidic residents are starting to feel the danger as the riots spread.

A local resident was quoted as saying "I think we are fortunate that we are getting on a plane this Thursday and going with the whole family to Israel. I don't know how [the riots] will develop, but it is clear there is a lot of fear. Here too we encounter blacks every day that are walking around on the streets, but right now it is impossible to know how they will react."

Are "blacks" in England called "African Americans"? Obviously not. What are they called - Blacks? African English? I have no idea what this guy should have called them.

Regardless of that, I don't know anything about this particular fellow who was quoted, besides for the fact tat his name was Abraham. I do know that Stamford Hill is largely made up of anti-Zionists, and those who are not anti are at best largely ambivalent to the State of Israel. Despite that, with the Jews of Stamford Hill finding themselves in danger, Israel is here for them. And they know it. And they can remain anti-Zionist and still use Israel as their safe haven in their time of need. No problem.

After all, that is what Israel is all about. To be a home for the Jews. Like it or not.

Al Jazeera has had a major part in the uprising in Egypt, though not nearly as major a part as Twitter and Facebook have had. That is why the Egyptian government has already tried to block access to twitter and Facebook, and is now shutting down the local Al Jazeera.

Al Jazeera reported yesterday that Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak might be fleeing the country, with Tel Aviv as his planned destination. They claim the source for the report is the Egyptian embassy in tel Aviv, as they are making plans for his arrival, after Saudi Arabia rejected his request.

Personally I do not believe it. Mubarak could go to many places, the favorite among exiled Arab leaders has always been London. Why would he go to Tel Aviv when he never even came to Israel on a diplomatic trip throughout the attempts to mediate in the peace process? Israel's prime ministers, presidents, and ministers went to Egypt many times, yet Mubarak has always refused to go to Israel. I don't see why he would start now, unless London and everyone else also rejected his travel plans. But then perhaps Israel should reject him as well, if he is being overthrown - why offer him refuge?

News reports are already saying the Mubarak's family has fled to London, and now Mubarak himself has fled to Sharm el-Sheik. Perhaps he is on his way to Tel Aviv. I would advise him while he stays in Sharm el Sheik that he should be careful of the Zionist sharks in the waters there.

So why should the restoration of an ancient Jewish synagogue in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City be a provocation to cause rioting among the Palestinians?

Land for Peace....I said that I will help them obtain land for their buildings, and in exchange I want complete quiet. Thank God this arrangement works.

-- Mayor Moshe Abutbol (Bet Shemesh)

Regarding how he achieved quiet by the more extreme community in Bet Shemesh - by buying them off with land.
Funny thing is, he is not saying they promised they will be quiet, but he says he has already achieved the quiet. I am not sure what quiet he is referring to - just last week there were at least 3 days where the roads through RBS B were shut down and closed off due to rioting by the community he refers to in the above quote.

Maybe he means he has achieved their quiet in between the rioting periods.

I am holding a moratorium on posting more on the Jerusalem riots, pending further developments. Enough people have written about it, that there is little left that has not been said, despite a couple posts I had pending.

It was [relatively] quiet over shabbos, and I hope it stays that way. I will give them a chance, and not post any more on it unless the situation becomes exacerbated somehow.

Ynet has posted an article by Yehuda Litani in which he says the excavations nearby and the renovations on the ramp of the Mugrabim Gate will lead to bloodshed and are not worth it. He wants Israel to abandon the renovations and excavations.

And this is after Israel has already given tacit permission to the Arabs to add a new minaret on the Mount while rejecting the Jews requests to build a synogague. They won't even let us do badly needed renovations and historical excavations.

Litani says, "We don't have to demonstrate our sovereignty over every inch of united Jerusalem in every case. At this time, which isn't easy for Israel and features immediate dangers, ranging from Hizbullah in Lebanon to the Iranian nuclear threat, we don't need this confrontation, which will give the Palestinians a reason to end their own bloody clashes and unite against Israel."

He might be right. There are possible scenarios in which it might just not be worth our "provoking" the peace loving Arabs to violence. After all, while sad that innocents are getting killed, it is better that they are killing each other in Gaza City rather than killing Jews or forcing us to kill them. A provocation by Israel could change all that. It could unite the various factions among the PA Arabs and get them to stop fighting with each other and start fighting with us again. Nobody wants that.

He might be right. But not when it comes to the Temple Mount. It is bad enough that the Arabs have acting control over the Mount and we Jews have to be debased and humiliated any time we want to go to visit the Mount with body searches for religious material and not being allowed to pray on the Mount.

They use our democratic society against us. We democratically have to give them control over anything they claim they are sensitive to. We democratically have to give them rights and freedoms in the name of peace and justice. Yet when they are in control of something they show us no liberties and offer us no rights and freedoms.

We have given them practical control over the Temple Mount. Do they let us have our religious freedoms and pray there, in the sight that is holiest to Judaism? No. Despite the fact that it is sovereign Israeli territory, we allow the Arabs enough control that they disallow jews to pray there. Freedom and liberty seems to only run one way when it comes to the Arabs.

Now Litani says we should not even demonstrate the slight amount of control we do have? If we let them hold the Mount hostage in this ridiculous baseless fashion and give in to their threats of violence, what would he say we should demonstrate our sovereignity over? only when they come looking for Lod and Ramle? Tel Aviv? Haifa? When will it be ok to demonstrate our sovereignity?

This is similar to the schoolyard bully who beats up the nerdy kid for his lunch money. He keeps on doing it for more and more power and money, until the kid realizes he has to stand up for himself. When he finally gets the courage to fight back, that is when the bully leaves him alone.

My three year old daught got a new book recently. It is a book about a kid who has low self esteem and is picked on by the other kids. A new kid moves into the neighborhood and the kid oozes with self esteem and immediately has all the other kids respect. The low self esteem kid asks him how he can be "strong" like him. His response is not to let them pick on you. When they tell you to do something, if you do not want to do it say no. Stand up for yourself. He says they will leave you alone if you just say no. It is not muscles that make you strong, rather the confidence and will to stand up for yourself.

It is time we stopped giving in to every threat the Arabs throw at us. It is time we stood up to them and told them we will not take it from them anymore. Let them show us how civilized they can be.

Even Judge Cheshin said yesterday (referring to the new Justice Minister who advocates changing the judicial system), "This is my house and I will cut off the hand of anybody who threatens it."