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Two shuls were targeted in Shabbos arson attacks in Israel R”L. officials are confirming that both cases appear to be the work of an arsonist.

The first shul is the caravan shul established by a Chabad shaliach on Kvish 6, the Yitzchak Rabin Highway, at the gas station rest center. It was established in June by Chabad’s Rabbi Shimon Rosenberg, in cooperation with Migdal HaEmek Chief Rabbi Yitzchok Dovid Grossman Shlita and Kvish 6 officials. The caravan was completely destroyed in the blaze along with hundreds of sifrei kodesh and tashmishei kedusha. Despite the extensive damage, B’chasdei Hashem the flames were extinguished by firefighters before the fire spread to the gas station adjacent, which may have led to catastrophe chas v’sholom.

Police investigators point out the shul and gas station are quite close to Arab areas since the rest stop is located between the Baka el-Garbiya and Nachal I’ron (Wadi Ara) exists on the highway. Police believe it may have been a hate crime perpetrated by Arabs from the nearby Israeli Arab municipalities.

The second shul fire on Shabbos was reported in Petach Tikvah. An arsonist poured a flammable substance in the shul on Chovavei Tzion Street and started the fire. Baruch Hashem the response by the fire department was quick and firemen prevented the blaze from spreading to the Aron Kodesh.

Migdal HaEmek Chief Rabbi Rabbi Yitzchok Dovid Grossman Shlita heard the news on motzei Shabbos. He explained that he was contacted by Rabbi Rosenberg over a year ago, explaining he felt the shul on Kvish 6 was essential to provide a place for travelers to catch a minyan. Together they raised hundreds of thousands of shekels to set up the caravan shul. Rabbi Grossman adds “tens of pairs of tefilin were inside and over 1,000 sifrei kodesh along with yarmulkes, tzitzis and other items generally found in a shul.

Rav Grossman points out that Chazal teach us “ואהי להם למקדש מעט – אלו בתי כנסיות ובתי מדרשות” and as such, we build shuls and this is where the Shechina as it were dwells as HKBH yearns for our tefilos.

Rabbi Grossman adds that in the shul’s close to a year of being in existence, 10,000s of motorists benefited, asking rhetorically “how many times was אמן יהא שמיה רבה recited and now, it has all gone up in flames”.

“When I heard the tragic news immediately after Shabbos I phoned the rav of the shul and assured him ‘we will rebuild it anew’. We will prove to everyone that one cannot be eliminate the voices of Torah and Tefilla. Along with the generous one in Am Yisrael we will mobilize new strength to rebuild the shul and buy tefilin and sifrei kodesh to once again merit hundreds of Jews putting on tefilin and davening”.

“With HKBH’s assistance we will turn over every stone and raise the huge required sum to rebuild the Mikdosh Me’at anew” Rabbi Grossman concluded.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)