An unidentified assailant attacked a computer and cellphone store in Meah shearim over Chol Hamoed Pesach. The destruction of the storefront, also destroyed the security cameras of the store hampering attempts to obtain footage from the incident until now.
On Sunday, store owners and technology experts succeeded at recovering the data from the damaged security cameras and were able to get a glimpse of the footage contained therein.
The store, which primarily sold cell phones, also had an internet cafe on its second floor which could be used by paying customers. Following the incident, the extremist group claimed that the store did not have “kosher” certification to run the internet cafe and offered a completely unblocked internet connection to users. The group also said that it was for this reason that protests had been held in front of the store in recent months in order to warn the community away from using the services of the store and to prevent them from purchasing anything from the store.
Over the holiday, the violence was stepped up a notch, when violent extremists broke into the store, smashed the windows, sprayed skunk water on all the technological devices they could, and threw smelly fish into the premises.
The store’s owners issued a statement to Israeli press outlet Kikar Shabbat that said: “It is inconceivable that the extremists will use violence in order to enforce their extremist view on our community.”
In the footage that was recovered, a man in a long black suit and wearing a motorcycle helmet was seen smashing the store’s windows and causing severe damage to the porperty within.
(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
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2 Responses
some where the concept of being so super religious that one can sin and call it a mitzvah must stop. These people are hoodlums and mazikim (do damage) and feel that they can do what ever they want and are righteous.
It should be pointed out in local news papers that they are sinners and criminals both in secular law and also in Jewish law. They and their rabbanim who promote such actions should be put in jail!
Destroying someone’s business to “right a wrong” is such a “big mitzva” ” that it overrides everything? Who gave someone the right to decide if someone else is allowed to have computers with internet? People should mind their own business and not take matters into their own hands. It seems to me the aveirah of breaking someone’s store is worse than having internet.