Hagaon Harav Mordechai Gross recently paskened that Ashdod now has the status of being a walled city (b’safeik) and the megillah should be read both on Yud Daled and Tes Vav Adar without a bracha like the minhag in Ramot, Shiloh and other locations in Israel, Kikar H’Shabbos reported.

The reason for Ashdod’s change in status is due to new neighborhoods that were built between Biblical Ashdod and modern Ashdod, providing a continuous link between the two areas.

Biblical Ashdod was a walled city during the times of Yehoshua and now that two areas are linked, the status applies b’safeik to both areas.

“Due to new neighborhoods established between Biblical Ashdod and the Ashdod of our times, Harav Gross paskened that the city of Ashdod is now b’safeik [of being considered a walled city] and the megillah shoud be read on Yud Daled and Tes Vav Adar,” wrote Rav Tzemach Baruch Rabinowitz, the Rav of the Grodna kehilla in Ashdod who asked Harav Gross to pasken on the issue.

“The Biblical Ashdod mentioned in Tanach was walled from the days of Yehoshua. This fact was known for years but there were no continuous residential neighborhoods between Biblical Ashdod and modern Ashdod until recent years. The only link was the industrial area of Be’er Tuvia. This link was not sufficient because it is a commercial area…and is not considered a residential area. But new residential buildings were recently built near the mall and industrial area.”

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)