Widespread condemnatory statements were released following an attack against a mosque in the Shechem area on Friday morning, as was reported by YWN-Israel. It appears the attack was more serious than first believed, resulting in significant damage to the house of worship, located in the PA (Palestinian Authority) village of Yusuf.
Not missing the opportunity, the Organization of Islamic Countries (OIC), representing 57 Muslim nations, is calling for a response, from the international community, using the isolated incident to step-up the involvement of the international community in areas throughout Yehuda and Shomron.
The arson attack against the mosque was a “provocative act” officials in the border police are quoted as saying, adding as a result; there is an increase border police presence in the Shechem area to prevent retaliatory attacks. Prayer carpets and Korans were burned and damage was reported as quite significant.
In a statement yesterday quoted in the daily Haaretz, the secretary general of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, added that the “profanation of the mosque and the torching of copies of the Koran found in it, and the spraying of racist graffiti on the mosque’s walls against Islam and Muslims represent blatant aggression against the sanctity of sacred places.”
The condemnations were widespread, including Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Ehud Barak, opposition leader Tzipi Livni, President Shimon Peres, senior ISA (Israel Security Agency – Shin Bet) officials and an official statement was released by OU President Steven Savitsky and Rabbi Steven Weil, executive vice president, of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, condemning the act and supporting the right of the government to bring the responsible people to justice.
The OU statement was alarmingly similar to Savitsky’s statements prior to the 2005 Disengagement, the expulsion of Jews from N. Shomron and Gaza, when the OU supported the “democratically elected government of the state of Israel”.
YWN-Israel adds that condemnations from the president, prime minister, and the OU were not heard following recent vandalism attacks against shuls and the repeated desecration of Har HaZeisim over recent months.
Itamar Ben-Givir, a parliamentary aide who aligned with the teachings of the late Rabbi Meir Kahane HY”D stated he feels the government should “freeze the racist edicts” to calm the situation while MK (Ichud Leumi) Dr. Michael Ben-Ari, a talmid of Rabbi Kahane as well, added he “ran out of tears when the shuls in Gush Katif were burned”.
(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)
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9 Responses
Does YWN Israel think that the OU was wrong? If we expect CAIR and Muslim organizations to condemn Muslim violence surely we should expect Jewish groups to condemn Jewish violence. What in the world does this have to do with the OU’s statement on Gaza? If a crime is commited in the name of Islam then Muslims should condemn it. A crime in the name of Christianity should be condemned by the church. And a crime prpetuated in the name of Judaism should be condemned by Jews! Thank you Steven Savitsky!
Of course the OU is wrong. Where in Torah do we find anything against this?
ok “whatsgoingon”,
how do you know it was jews that did it, and how do you know it was “perpetuated in the name of Judaism”?
are you so sure that some left winger did not start the fire in order to fan the flames of hatred towards those who have the most to lose?
we should wait until they find the perpetrators before starting to condemn others.
When the arabs burned down Kever Yosef, the charedi world and the OU were mute, later the OU said something, but it was too late. When shuls are desecrated in Israel or destroyed by the government to appased the arabs, the charedi world is MUM. When the shuls and Yeshivot at Gush Katif were destroyed, the charedi world was MIA. But when Torah Jews that settle the land are accused of wrong doing, they jump into the wagon without getting their facts straight to condemned their fellow brothers.
#4
Very true.
It is disheartening that a Kashruth organization gets into “political correctness” without knowing the facts.
If their info about food ingredients mirrors their political info, DON’T EAT THEIR STUFF!
It’s highly dubious!
I don’t know who burned the Mosque and I have a very hard time believing that any Jew would enter that area let a long set a Mosque on fire and graffiti it, where were all the Arabs? Isn’t Friday is their Shabbos lehavdil so they are all presumed to be attending, then why would any Jew show his face especially their on Friday? Now when and if we find out who did it maybe then these individuals (mentioned above) would have a right to condemn that person or persons. Before that is known no one not even the chief Rabbi of anything has a right to say anything against any Jew or amply any such.
Dear number 2 – Isnt it interesting that we do find such a precedent in the Torah – When Shimon and Levi wiped out the city of…you guessed it…Shechem!
There is plenty of Torah on whether or not they were worthy of this execution – take a look at the Rambam, Ramban and discussions throughout the ages. Be that as it may, Yaakov Avinu bemoans this act of provocation by stating his fear, lest the nations surrounding them unite and attack while the family of Yisroel are so few in number.
So maybe we could say that morally or even halachically there are grounds for making war under these circumstances. Yaakov Avinu reminds us that unless we are prepared to endure the consequences of these actions, we may be making a grave mistake.
Are you advocating that we, should ,en mass, march on all the mosques in Israel and set them on fire? Are you prepared for the consequences of that decision?
And to everyone above – Maybe Steve Savitsky pointed the finger at our fellow Jews, maybe he didnt. I didnt read his response but I shudder to think that there are Yiddin who deep down wouldnt be ashamed if this was in fact discovered to be the work of Jews.
Our people have taken the perverse pride in extolling the Jewish inclination towards corruption as in the Madoff scandal, and our distancing from the coarser line of crimes like murder. Are we reaching a new stage where violence has been put back on the table?
Didnt Yaakov Avinu express pain at his confrontation that: “perhaps he might have to kill someone?” I think that has always been the correct attitude towards violence. Nebuch, it must be done.
Is the Chareidi readership of YWN so enamored with the idea of violently opposing our enemies that they are ready to sign their sons up for military service in Eretz Yisroel? Or do you cheer over this bloodshed like a crazed football fan with every bone-crunching “hit?”
“Are you advocating that we, should ,en mass, march on all the mosques in Israel and set them on fire? ”
No, of course not. Where did you get the idea that I was advocating that, or anything at all?
Milhouse – would you be so kind then to explain what you meant by the question: “where in Torah do we find anything against this?”
Doesn’t history show that when we remain silent when acts of this nature occur, that our silence only emboldens the perpetrators to broaden their activities?
The Torah is very explicit about not picking fights with irresponsible odds and there are numerous sources for Darchei Shalom – I am really curious to know what your comment was about.