Senior Israel Police commanders this week toured a number of Yerushalayim yeshivas and talmidei torah, explaining the ISA (Israel Security Agency – Shin Bet) has concrete intelligence warnings of planned Hamas attacks against religious institutions.
Senior Jerusalem commander Pinni Cohen visited a number of schools, accompanied by Bentzion Oring, the Jerusalem Zaka commander. Police were alarmed at the poor level of security in many yeshivas and talmidei torah, explaining anyone can enter many of the schools with ease. Even some of the schools with guards, they did not ask for ID of visitors while others were unarmed.
Zaka director Yehuda Meshi-Zahav explains that from the information presented to him, terrorists are indeed seeking to target a religious institution because the IDF in Gaza targeted a number of mosques.
Meshi-Zahav adds his volunteers are circulating from yeshiva to yeshiva in the hope of opening the eyes of administrators to the need to immediately improve security precautions in yeshivas and talmidei torah.
(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)
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9 Responses
Raboisai,
tain lechochom v’yechkam.
we must become more vigilante in security in chutz laaretz. a must. speak to pricipals. caretakers of shuls. etc.
vHashem yishmor
Hashem Yerachem! The Jewish people will only be saved fromour enemies in the merit of Torah study.
When they say they are alerting Yeshivos and Talmidei Torah, I hope and assume they mean ALL SCHOOLS – including Seminaries, High Schools, Elementary schools – everywhere our Jewish boys and girls are learning. All these places should be heavily guarded!! Maybe some of them should be moved to a different/hidden place for a while. Also Shuls must be protected. Ha-Shem is the Ultimate Protector of our people, but we must do our Hishtadlus.
I also agree with #1 – we should take precautions in chutz La’Aretz as well.
I recently heard someone say that in Israel all school and yeshiva administrators are required by law to know how to use a gun, and own one. I think that that is probably a good idea here as well. It doesn’t hurt to have them at least know how to handle a gun. I would feel safer sending my kids to school.
Now isn’t that a kind wake up call to “religiouse” yidden. Let’s wake up!
Al tidami linafshaich lihimalait bais hamelech
#1. What exactly do you expect people to do that they are not doing now? HEENAY LO YANUM VLO YEESHAN SHOMER YISROEL!
In America, with tuition as astronomically high as it is, and even that doesn’t ever cover a day school or Yeshiva’s budget, where exactly will the $$$s come from for all this “security” and “heavily guarded”? In this economy there’s not that much liquid assets to pay for this stuff.
I’m not saying we don’t need it, we certainly do, but it’s just not economically feasible at all.
I hope YWN’s source for this story is better than its source for the story about the woman who gave a generous tip to a New York Arab cabbie.
Comment by nfgo — January 8, 2009 @ 1:00 pm
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Do not blame yeshivaworld for alerting the public. I can’t talk in the name of yeshivaworld but I hope my opinion is correct with what I am writing here.
Yeshivaworld probably felt that due to the seriousness of the alert they would rather put it out there for what it’s worth at the time then g-d forbid something happening and then people like you would question why we did not get a warning from yeshivaworld.
Any credible news source checks facts out on all stories but when it comes to terrorism warnings and security issues they usually put out any type of alert before the fact finding mission is complete.
If you want to go ahead with the blame game and be immature go after the person that started this thing because the next security alert might not be taken seriously because of the assumption that it can be a prank. It’s better to be alert at all times and know your surroundings and report anything suspicious.
I personally saw 4 years ago a few muslims staking out two shuls in Flatbush. I reported the incident to the proper authorities and will NOT divulge which shuls.
Nachum Segal has interviewed many people on his show who have stated MANY times about the incident in Baltimore (and other places) where a parent also noticed muslims staking out a yeshiva. I think in that story they were seen taking pictures of the place.
At Newark airport about two years ago there were 2 people arrested for taking pictures on the side of the runway. (on the NJ turnpike side.) This incident did not even make the news and the two people taking pictures were arrested in the Newark airport incident and the reason for the quick arrest was the fact that the person who witnessed the incident did the right thing by calling 911 immediately. Also it is against the law to take ANY pictures of airports, bridges and tunnels. There are signs that clearly state NO PICTURES at these places so the police have the right to make an arrest “even if they were not doing anything.”
See something? say something!