Another day, another reckless stunt from Shuvu Banim. This time, nearly 800 of their followers, along with members of the Breslov community, gathered at what they claim is the kever of Rav Ashi—right along the Israel-Lebanon border, in a highly sensitive military zone. The IDF, already stretched thin dealing with real security threats, was tasked with escorting them to this so-called “holy site.” But there’s just one glaring problem: there isn’t a shred of evidence that Rav Ashi is buried there.

Rav Ashi, the great Amora who played a pivotal role in compiling the Gemara, lived and died in Bavel. Every serious historical and Talmudic source supports this, and none place him in Eretz Yisroel, let alone on the Lebanon border. Talmud Bavli (Bava Basra 157b) describes his death but does not indicate that he ever set foot in Eretz Yisrael. His entire life and scholarly work were centered in Sura, Babylonia, without a single reference to travel or burial in the land of Israel. The 10th-century historical account by Rav Sherira Gaon, one of the most authoritative sources on the lives of the Talmudic sages, explicitly states that Rav Ashi died in Sura: “ורב אשי זקן בסורא ומית שם”—“And Rav Ashi grew old in Sura and died there.” Nowhere does it suggest his body was transported elsewhere or that he had any connection to the region now claimed as his burial site.

Lebanon, though part of the broader Land of Israel in antiquity, was not a center of Jewish scholarship during Rav Ashi’s time. The primary Torah hubs were in Babylonia (Sura and Pumbedisa) and in Eretz Yisrael (Teverya). There is simply no historical record of Rav Ashi ever having ties to the region near the modern Israel-Lebanon border.

And yet, despite overwhelming evidence that this so-called “kever” is nothing more than a baseless myth, nearly 800 people risked their safety—and the safety of IDF soldiers—to visit it. This isn’t the first time Shuvu Banim members have caused chaos over this fabricated holy site. Just last month, twenty of them illegally crossed into Lebanon to daven there, leading to arrests. Days later, another thirty attempted the same, with four detained after confrontations with security forces. Now, with IDF protection, the crowd swelled to nearly 800, forcing the army to divert resources to facilitate this madness.

Even if the claim about the kever had any legitimacy, does anyone seriously believe that Rav Ashi—who dedicated his life to Torah—would have wanted people endangering themselves and others just to visit his gravesite? How many of those who went on this pilgrimage have ever even learned a daf of Gemara in their lives?

There is a clear difference between genuine Jewish tradition and reckless, cult-like behavior. Authentic Judaism values Torah, intellect, and truth. This spectacle was the opposite—a dangerous and irrational obsession with unverified “kevarim” that puts lives at risk. No serious talmid chacham would endorse this. Rav Ashi himself, the very man who codified our Gemara, would never have supported such a baseless and reckless pilgrimage. Torah is about truth, not hysteria.

Time and again, Shuvu Banim has proven that their priorities lie elsewhere. Whether through their fanatical devotion to their twisted leader or their obsession with fabricated traditions, they continue to create crises, expecting the military to accommodate their fantasies. The IDF has far more pressing concerns than escorting people to imaginary gravesites. Our soldiers should not have to risk their lives because a group of extremists decided that a Shi’ite shrine in Lebanon must actually be Rav Ashi’s kever. At a time when real threats loom on the northern border, this kind of reckless behavior is beyond irresponsible. It’s madness.

Signed,

Veshama Haemes

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