There is already much speculation regarding last week’s arrival in Eretz Yisrael of Australian Chabadnik R’ Yosef Yitzchak Gutnick, who in 1996 gave a major push to the campaign which succeeded in placing Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu in office for the first time.
Gutnick portrays himself as a shaliach of the Lubavitcher Rebbe zt”l regarding matters of a Greater Eretz Yisrael, and some believe he is here to meet with the prime minister ahead of his May 18th meeting in the White House – with many fearing he will make land concessions under heavy American pressure.
In a related matter, a few hours before Shabbos, Gutnick met with the Toldos Avraham Yitzchak Rebbe Shlita in his Yerushalayim home. The Rebbe’s son, R’ Aryeh Leib Teitlebaum HY”D was one of the Mumbai Kedoshim. The Rebbe spoke highly of the work of Chabad shluchim worldwide, especially in Mumbai, with Gutnick reporting on the renewed activities in the Mumbai Chabad House following the murderous attack at that location.
Since his arrival last week, Gutnick has been busy traveling the country, meeting with askanim and major figures. He was met upon his arrival by Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger Shlita.
(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)
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There was a fabulous article on Rabbi Gutnick (he apparently got semicha over the last few years) in this past week’s Mishpacha magazine.
(Ironically, it mentioned that during the last 10 years, when Gutnick was unfortunately having a major financial reversal, no one would report his comings and goings to Israel. Now that his finances have b”h vastly improved, people are once again taking note.)
correction: the rebbes son IN LAW…