HaRav Yitzchok Dovid Grossman Shlita flew to Johannesburg to visit with Rabbi Eliezer Berland in an effort to assist him. Rabbi Berland remains jailed without bail awaiting extradition to Israel.

Rav Grossman described his experience to Kav HaChadashos, telling how he left immediately after Pesach with Rabbi Berland’s grandson Rabbi Chaim Reicher. Rav Grossman added he worked with Reicher before Yomtov to make sure Rabbi Berland received matzos before Yomtov. “This was a major operation before Yomtov and then we decided to visit immediately after Yomtov” he adds.

Rabbi Grossman explains they did everything possible to assist Rabbi Berland, both short and long term. He describes that when seeing Rabbi Berland and the situation is “problematic”, adding on that day they took the rabbi to court even though there was no hearing scheduled. “Mistake or not they took him at 7:00 AM and returned him 7:30 PM.

“He was happy when he saw me, a joy I cannot describe. Today I was with the rabbi for two hours and I cannot describe the tears and joy. We learned together Tanya, להשכילך בינה, which speaks about that nothing bad comes down from HKBH and he sustains and recreates us each moment, always with us.

“The rav needs a real yeshua. We must get him out. He hasn’t eaten for two days. They did not want to bring in food and B”H I succeeded after going to the prison warden and managed to give him food in his hand. But this is a daily problem, the food. The rav is in a pit. It is very scary. We must extricate him from this pit so he can continue spreading Torah”.

Rabbi Grossman explains many are working continuously to get the rabbi out of this situation and to permit him to return to a life of spreading Torah.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)