The public is being asked to pray for Gavriel Noach ben Freida Bluma and Rivka bas Yehudis, Aryeh Leibish ben Elta Nechama Maltshi and Ben Tzion ben Elka, as well as "anyone else affected by the tragedy."
Indian officials: Eight captives freed from Mumbai Chabad center
22:29 Diplomat: No hostages have been freed from Chabad center in Mumbai (AP) (from the Haaretz ticker)
Eight Jewish hostages held by Islamic terrorists were released from the Chabad House in Mumbai on Thursday evening in an Indian commando operation, according to a state official.
Mumbai Beit Chabad under siege
The condition and identities of the hostages were unclear, but Israel Radio reported seven hostages were members of the same family.
However, a diplomat who had been monitoring the situation closely said no hostages were released. He spoke on the customary condition of anonymity, and contradicted the Indian official. for complete article
No Israelis left in Mumbai's Chabad House
22:28 - Nov. 27, '08
Report: Escapees from Chabad House Were Not Rescued
22:11 - Nov. 27, '08
Honestly, I don't know what to tell you. I don't have inside knowledge, haven't heard from my contact for a few hours. G-d willing they have been rescued and are receiving medical care. May there be a refuah shleimah to Gavriel Noach ben Freida Bluma and Rivkah bas Yehudis and all of the others in need of our prayers.
A special Refuah Shleimah to
Pnina bat Sofia Zlata
AMEN
Besides all the "yay yay America" stuff, I think that a lot of frum Americans celebrate Thanksgiving for the pragmatic reason that it's a day one can travel to relatives for a meal, none of the halachik restrictions.
When I was growing up Thanksgiving was an occassion to crowd into a tiny one bedroom walkup in Brooklyn with all my mother's family. When I became religious I ate first at kosher venues. Once we moved to Israel, I never thought about celebrating it, since it wasn't Thanksgiving without all my cousins.
A bunch of unhappy Europeans risk their lives to travel the high seas to an unknown place. They arrive sick and infect the local natives. The survivors are introduced to local foods and declare an annual Thanksgiving feast.
Chabad fears for safety of its Mumbai rabbi and his wifeNo contact with Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg since terror attacks; Foreign Ministry: Contact with 20 Israelis in India yet to be made.
B"H For the past few hours we have been unable to reach Rabbi and Mrs. Gavriel and Rivkah Holtzberg, the Shluchim to Mumbai, India, where terrorists attacks have occurred. The reports we are hearing from there could be better (see below.) It is a time for Tefillah. Please say Tehillim for:
We hope and pray that we will hear good news very soon. ************** Terrorists attacked multiple locations in Mumbai, India, late Wednesday night, with much of the gunfire occurring near the Chabad-Lubavitch center run by Rabbi Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg. By 3:00 a.m. local time, police reports indicated at least 78 people were killed when gunmen affiliated with an unknown Islamic terrorist group entered a series of hotels, a central train station and other popular tourist sites and began firing. An initial police response was met by heavy resistance; at least three officers, including a top commander, are dead, according to IBN, the local CNN's local sister station. Throughout the night, people reported explosions, which police attributed to grenades carried by the terrorists. More than 200 were injured. Of particular concern to authorities is the report of two gunmen taking foreign tourists hostage at the five-star Oberoi Hotel. The Indian military was reportedly making preparations to take the hotel by force before daybreak. Another 100 tourists and three members of India's parliament were holed up in the Taj Mahal Hotel. One friend of Gavriel Holtzberg reported receiving an e-mail from the Mumbai rabbi at 11:30 p.m. local time. The Israeli Consulate was in touch with Holtzberg, but the line was cut in middle of the conversation. No further contact has since been established. Other reports on IBN showed the Chabad House's building as being occupied by terrorists, but no further information could be confirmed. Chabad-Lubavitch representatives in New York and Israel are working alongside the Israeli Foreign Ministry, the U.S. Consulate in Mumbai and a volunteer team of local residents to ascertain the well being of the Holtzbergs and other Jews in the area. People are urged to say Psalms for Gavriel Noach ben Freida Bluma, Rivka bas Yehudis and Moshe Tzvi Ben Rivkah, and anyone affected by the tragedy. -- Chabad of Crimea and Bais Menachem Jewish School appreciate your help. Please see our website http://www.chabadcrimea.org/ Secure tax deductible donations can be made online. Or send checks to: American Friends of Chabad of Crimea 1601 Union Street Brooklyn, NY 11213 Thank you very much for your kind support! |
The Moshiach must be closer!
"Indeed," the judge continued, "producing this order [implies an attempt] to prevent a 'terrorist infiltration,' and it is inconceivable that [Federman] be included in this category. For this reason he should have been permitted to remain in the closed territory in order to protect the Israeli communities from terrorist attacks and infiltration, and not have been expelled from the area." "The methods by which [the State used to evacuate the outpost] were unconstitutional and not proportional, in as much as they prevented Federman from living in a significant portion of the land of Israel," the ruling read. "The petition by the State is defective [because of its] grave discrimination. I have not heard any explanation as to why the State chose to evacuate a man with a family which includes a wife and ninelittle children at 1:30 at night. I don't see how this kind of thing exhibits an obligation by the state to protect its children."
Mazuz told Olmert to expect an indictment on charges of fraudulent receipt of goods under aggravated circumstances, fraud, breach of public trust, false registration in corporate documents and tax evasion.
1. Link to your tagger and list these rules on your blog.And here are my seven facts:
2. Share 7 facts about yourself, some random, some weird.
3. Tag 7 people (if possible) at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
4. Let them know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blogs.
I tag:
November 23, 2008 "How About This!" Ze'ev Jabotinsky -- 1880-1940 -- was a giant in Zionist history, standing for the sort of proud Jewish integrity that kept us strong. He came out of Russia at the beginning of the 20th century as a journalist, who ultimately achieved much acclaim for his writing. The pogroms of Kishnev spurred him to organize Jewish self-defense units and to participate in the sixth Zionist Congress. He promoted the use of Hebrew and the establishment of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. During WWI, he was instrumental in forming a Jewish Legion. After the war he became a member of the Zionist Executive and a founder of Keren Haysod. Taking issue with the policies of the Zionist Movement, he established the Revisionist Zionist Alliance, which promoted immediate founding of a Jewish state. Within the Revisionist movement developed the Betar youth movement, which taught young people nationalism; the Irgun, the military arm of the movement; and the New Zionist Movement, the political arm. It was the Revisionists who promoted illegal Jewish immigration into Palestine after the British blocked it. Once Israel was founded, well after Jabotinsky's death, the Revisionist Movement melded into Herut, which was a precursor to today's Likud party.  ~~~~~~~~~~ Jabotinsky, who has been described as "both a visionary and a warrior," made immeasurable contributions to the Jewish state. I have thought over the years that he has been much neglected, and I have wondered how many really know about him any more. Thus it gives me pleasure to have this opportunity to write about him. ~~~~~~~~~~ And the opportunity? Seems Jabotinsky has a name-sake grandson, Ze'ev Jabotinsky, who, just hours ago, stood with Binyamin Netanyahu at Likud headquarters in Tel Aviv to announce that he would be running in the Likud primary next month. Netanyahu, elated and excited, said, "Things have come full circle. It is a privilege for the Likud to have such a man in its ranks." Replied Jabotinsky: "I admit I'm excited. It's a privilege to join the movement. The last time Jabotinsky [his grandfather], Begin [Benny's father, Menachem] and Netanyahu [Binyamin's father, Benzion, still alive at 93] served the Jewish public was in World War II, when they tried to save Europe's Jews from annihilation. Today we are a team again and we want to do everything we can to meet the challenges Israel is facing." ~~~~~~~~~~ Arutz Sheva cited Jabotinsky as having said in a Yediot Ahronot interview that Oslo made things "500 times worse." A "Palestinian" state, he said, "would be the base for the international terror of Al Qaeda and Hezbollah with Iranian funding. If they opt for that we will reach a situation in which instead of 1,400 [Jewish] dead there will be 30,000 dead. They will not hesitate to use chemical weapons against us." ~~~~~~~~~~ And how about this, as well: Yaakov Turkel, who served as a justice on Israel's High Court for ten years, until 2005, has given an interview to Arutz Sheva in which he says that the High Court did NOT order the eviction of the residents of Beit HaShalom in Hevron. Rather, the court put it in the hands of the State and gave authorities the freedom to decide whether or not to evict -- it said the State MAY evict. "When the Defense Minister said he would abide by the Supreme Court ruling ordering the Jews' eviction," Turkel said, "this was very much not to my liking, since there was no such order… This misunderstanding has caused the great rift in the religious and right-wing's trust in the Supreme Court." ~~~~~~~~~~ The question, I would say, is whether Barak knew full well that he didn't have to proceed with eviction but opted to put the onus on the court. The article cites Public Security Minister Avi Dichter (Kadima) who said last week: "The ruling is not a recommendation, and we will implement it exactly as written [saying in 30 days no Jews would be living in the building]. We have no intention of straying from the Supreme Court ruling, which is the law." Arutz Sheva suggests that Dichter must not have read the ruling. ~~~~~~~~~~ I will follow up on this. Justice Turkel puts much of the responsibility for the misunderstanding on the media, which comes as no surprise -- the media is in the main anti-"settler." But why were there no lawyers in the past days who raised this issue? It does change matters. ~~~~~~~~~~ As to Hevron, some 20,000 visitors were estimated to have been in the Jewish Quarter of the city over Shabbat because of the Torah portion. Some have remained because of the political situation. There were a handful of incidents, involving youngsters from the outside, but for the most part things were peaceful. ~~~~~~~~~~ There was a report today that officers in the IDF Central Command were worried that when Barak give orders to evacuate Beit HaShalom soldiers and police who live past the Green Line (and figure they may be next) or those with a nationalist orientation may refuse to participate. ~~~~~~~~~~ See my website www.ArlenefromIsrael.info |
And when I read about the discrimination here in Israel against Jews, whether being able to live where we wish or travel where we want, I truly wonder why the international civil rights activists don't rush out here to support us. Why do these sic liberals support the repression of Jewish rights?
- ON THIS DAY -
On Nov. 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated while riding in a motorcade in Dallas. Suspected gunman Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested. Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in as the 36th president of the United States.
Yitzchak gave us Oslo, but he also developed an excellent road system, bypassing Arab cities.
All over the world, modern highways are kept out of the cities, so I have no problem with the fact that we are no longer forced to travel through Ramalla. I just wish that we weren't banned from Ramalla. Many, many roads in Judea and Samaria are Judenrein, forbidden to Jews. That makes traveling very difficult and lengthy. Arabs are allowed on all the roads, except within small Jewish communities.
The Israeli Government has already created a situation separating Israel from Judea and Samaria with "checkpoints." We never know how long it will take to get through. Choosing the right lane is like choosing a line at the supermarket. There are times during the day, when there isn't a wait, and sometimes, even with all lanes open and manned, (some guards are even female,) the lines stretch a kilometer or more.
Sometimes there actually are useful things in The New York Times. The email headlines edition ends with an event that happened on the same day, but a different year. Today it was Lincoln's Gettsyburg Address.
Four score and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth upon this continent a new nation: conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Now we are engaged in a great civil war. . .testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated. . . can long endure. We are met on a great battlefield of that war.
We have come to dedicate a portion of that field as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.
But, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate. . .we cannot consecrate. . . we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here.
It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us. . .that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion. . . that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain. . . that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom. . . and that government of the people. . .by the people. . .for the people. . . shall not perish from the earth.
Here in Israel, there's a civil war, too. It's not a physically bloody as the American one, but it's vicious, even more vicious. Jewish Law and Philosphy disagrees with the little rhyme I was raised with in America:
Sticks and stones can break my bones
But words can never harm me.
According to Judaism words have powers stronger than the physical. Our minds control our bodies.
The Left, Israel's "elite," accademics, media, etc have been trying from the very beginning of Zionism to make a "new Jew," disengaged from religious restrictions, a Jew engaged in farming the Land, not meek tailor or peddler from Europe. They've evolved into urban, white-collared worker, but the disdain for traditional Judaism is still a central part of their philosphy.
Ironically, today it's the Torah Jew who embraces the Land as a crucial and irreplaceable living part of our heritage. We're being forced to fight for our rights, ordinary civil rights, as if there wasn't a Jewish State. Disengagement Protestors to be Tried After All .
A building in Hebron, bought by a Jew, is being threatened by the Israeli Government. According to the government and the courts, Jews are forbidden to live there. What if this was happening in Philidelphia, Boston, New York or Sacramento? Would anyone protest? It happened in Nazi Germany, and nobody cared, but I thought the world, the Jewish People realized the injustice and that it would never happen again.
Many Jews were killed during Israel's War of Independence and our wars of survival here and the still ongoing terror attacks. Have they "died in vain?"
L'Ilui Nishmata shel Rachella Druk, HaYa"D
In Loving Memory
And the Elevation of Rachella Druk's Soul
17 Years After Her Brutal Murder By Arab Terrorists
Now, davka, the Israeli Government has decided that Jews are forbidden to live in our holy city of Hebron, even in a building owned by Jews, and they must be forcibly evicted. What date was chosen? The eve of The Torah Portion, Parshat Chaye Sarah, which mentions Abraham's purchase of land in Hebron.
"Who need it? We have enough land without it."
According to an earlier agreement, those Gaza residents who did not own their own home and wished to join their Gush Katif communities in the Lachish region would be required to pay NIS 148,000 for half a dunam of land (approximately 1/8 of an acre). They will now be forced to pay NIS 225,000 for the same land.
Former residents of Gush Katif said the new price was unrealistically high. When representatives of the communities planning a move to Lachish first toured the area, they said, they were told each plot of land would cost approximately $10,000, at that time NIS 40,000.
This visual lesson is good for lots of "unpleasant" situations, the kinds of situations we prefer not thinking about. Unfortunately, Israelis are the Olympic Champs of avoiding reality.
For decades the media, courts and politicians have been attempting to sweet talk and bribe the Arab terrorists into becoming our friends and live in peace with us. Each gesture is met with derision and demands for more, but that doesn't stop the looney Left.
The brainwashing goes on, and sensible people are called "haters of peace," or "Land worshippers," or even nastier things. Sometimes those speaking common sense are jailed and exiled from their homes.
Entire Jewish communites and Jewish districts have been destroyed, to placate Arab demands. The results have been more attacks and even a war. I guess their heads are so far deep in the sand, their ears are stuffed and their eyes blinded.
A glimpse at the author Shifra Shomron with a personal look into the writing of her first novel Grains Of Sand: The Fall Of Neve Dekalim.
It's not just a book - it's a piece of history!
www.geocities.com/nevedekalim
I used to say that Olmert has collected so many secret files, like FBI's Hoover, that he's immune from prosecution.
