A gag order on a case pertaining to the arrest of two people on Har Habayis two weeks earlier was lifted on Sunday morning 27 Nissan 5774. To the surprise of many, the case, which was described as “very serious” does not appear to close to earth shattering and many are scratching their heads trying to understand why the need for a gag order.
On erev Shabbos 11 Nissan, as border police took over a Yitzhar yeshiva building, two people from an organization calling itself “Returning to the Mount” were detained on Har Habayis by police. They hung notices near a gate entering the Mount calling to clear Har Bayis ahead of Pesach to permit mispallalim to bring a korban Pesach on yomtov. The notices called to clear the holy site by 13 Nissan at 19:00.
Police ordered arresting those responsible for hanging the notices. The matter was handed over to the National Crimes Unit. Police asked the court to remand the suspects for five days and to issue a gag order on the case. The court ruled there was no justification to extend the remand of the suspects. They were released and distanced from the Old City of Jerusalem for 30 days. The court did agree to the media gag order.
Officials from the Returning to the Mount organization feel that just like security forces took over the Yitzhar yeshiva to restore order, they should do the same on Har Habayis to prevent future Arab rock-throwing attacks on Har Habayis and on mispallalim at the Kosel below. Officials add that the Islamic violence on Har Habayis on Pesach proves their concerns are warranted.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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4 Responses
To the surprise of many, the case, which was described as “very serious” does not appear to close to earth shattering and many are scratching their heads trying to understand why the need for a gag order?
To strengthen the authorities’ stance in preventing people ascending the Har HaBayis to bring a Korban Pesach and then to be Oleh leRegel during Pesach.
Of-course after reading Parshas Poroh, any Yerei Shomayim should be smart enough to stay away from the Har haBayis until we have a real Poro Adumo.
Korbon Pesach is brought Btumah. Poro Adumo is necessary for the individual but when the majority is Tomay it is brought b’tuma. In fact, the few bringing the Korbon Pesach would accomplish something for us here in the USA and the rest of Israel who are bderech rechoka, they would be mekayim the Mitvoh of Marror M’Dioraysa unlike now when it is a drabanon. All of this is theoretical. Tosafos, however, suggests that when the Korbon Pesach will come back we will have Moshe and Aaron with us. This suggests a radically different world post techias Hameysim. (Tosafos says this in answer to why we take Zroah and Baytza when Shabbos is erav Peasch and there is no Chagigas 14 and asks why not worry that people will learn from this to bring the karbon on shabbos. He answers that Kohanim are zrizim and besides Moshe and Aaron will be with us.)
After learning just a little bit about the Parah and Korban Pesach, any real yerei shamayim would know that Tumah is permitted when the whole tzibbur is Tamei, and we are fully allowed to bring the korban pesach and any other korbanot of the tzibbur even without the parah add ah.
147, this is typical Chutz La’aretz nonsense.
1) Tumah is batel batzibur, so if most of Israel is impure, they don’t need the Parah Aduma in order to bring korbanot.
2) You don’t need the Beit Hamikdash in order to bring Temidim and Korban Pesach. All you need is a mizbeach, and Machon Hamikdash already has one built and ready to move to Har Habayit whenever the government gives the go ahead (Be’ezrat Hashem Bekarov)
3) The prohibition of going on Har Habayit while impure is only a)when all of Klal Yisrael is mostly pure and b) when there is no specific purpose for going up there. Just going up to say you’ve been on Har Habayit or even for (very legitimate) political reasons is not considered a good enough reason to go there while impure (according to most opinions). If the purpose is to bring korbanot, you don’t need to be pure. During the time of the Hashmonaim on Chanukka, the Hashmonaim entered the Beit Hamikdash while impure and even brought korbanot.