report on Brooklyn event and More Honenu events: Today: Honenu events in Great Neck 10:00am in Bronx 7:00pm

bs"d

Distinguished Rabbanim and Media personnel, amv"sh

First let me report on the Brooklyn Honenu event. 

It was pouring rain but the strong in spirit came out nonetheless.  Shalom Pollack's presentation about Honenu was an eye opener even for me, (and I pride myself in being informed as to what is happening in Judea and Samaria).  Shalom told us of a settler who was being framed by Shabak. They wanted this settler to provide them with insider info that would put the settlers in a negative light and to perhaps incite him to do acts of violence.  This settler started to tape the telephone conversations with Shabak.  When they realized they were being taped, once late at night they stormed his house and found the tapes.  They thought they won against that settler, but they didn't know there was a copy elsewhere.  The tapes were then released to Israeli media.  This must have really upset the Shabak because this settler was then accused of killing 4 arabs and was arrested and sent to Jail under harsh conditions for 21 days without a lawyer and subjected to all kinds of methods used to break criminals. After 21 days a lawyer from Honenu was allowed on the case and only after another 10 days Honenu was able to get him released since there was no evidence against him.   Today he is a free man.  

Shalom described how an elderly gentlemen went to Beit HaShalom in Hebron as the residents of the building was being forcefully expelled.  This building is between Kiryat Arba and Hebron.  On the way there, this elderly gentleman was attacked by Arabs. He first shot in the air as one is required to do.  They kept on coming towards him.  He had no choice but to shoot in self defense.  One Arab was hurt.  But they kept on attacking. So he shot again wounding another Arab.  That too didn't stop them.  They kept on attacking.  Siata Dishmaya, someone came along that scared the Arabs away and he was saved Baruch Hashem.  But the next day he was brought in for questioning and arrested.  Honenu took the case and today he is a free man.  

Shalom told other such stories.  

Then Lori  got up to speak.  Very emotionally she said that she just got off the plane from Israel that morning .  She had been with Afsi on a Chizuk trip in honor of Chayei Sara.  She reported to us that in the communities where the group visited, the settlers are afraid of going to the police if they are attacked by Arabs. They are afraid of getting arrested.  This was not an isolated case.  It sounded like it was the motus operendez.  

She spoke of a Maaseh Shehaya, a true personal experience of one of the participants at passport control.  The official asked this women where she was going.  She answered to Hebron.  The official responded but that is not Jewish and that it was part of the Occupied territories.  She replied "Hebron? not Jewish????" The official responded that they were instructed to tell tourists that Hebron is not a safe place to visit to  which  this tourist responded "well I was there 2 months ago and it was just fine".  Lori  said that she and this other participant ate in Hebron on Shabbat Chayei Sara and sat at the same table with Danny Danon, Chaver Knesset.  They asked the Chaver Knesset about these strange instructions that people were receiving at passport control.  According to Lori, the Knesset Member was clueless as per what was happening.

Then Lester got up and spoke about how 8 of his grandchildren were helped by Honenu.  You can't find a more proud grandfather who brags about his grandchildren's arrests. My only wish is that my children and grandchildren have the same love and devotion for Eretz Yisroel as do the children and grandchildren of Lester and his Eishet Chayil.

It was a shame that Rabbanim didn't show.  Not even one. Shmuel Koneig spoke to at least 40 Rabbanim and called over 70 to tell them about Honenu and specifically about this event.  He spoke to several of the Rabbanim more than once.  I myself sent notices  to many Rabbanim and  newspapers and members of the Jewish Media. Only one reporter by the name of Fern Sidman showed up.  We expected her. She is on the front line fighting for the settlers and their rights to live on the Bilbical heartland of Israel. Yasher Koach to the Jewish Voice,

I really believe that all have legit explanation as per their absence.  Yasher Koach to Zev Brenner and Radio Hidabroot for putting Shalom on the air. 

But that night I came home and asked myself.  Is there a point in calling and calling when noone seems to pay attention? I went to bed with a book recently on loan from my friend Dina and the timing could not have been better.  After reading the first few pagesI felt that  G-d was pleading with me not to stop because look at what apathy could lead to.   Apparently, ignoring the plight of fellow Jews in Jewish Leadership is not a new phenomenon. The name of the book is Escaping Auschwitz by Ruth Linn published by Cornell University Press.   This is what I read on the jacket cover.

On 7 April 1944 a Slovakian Jew, Rudolf Vrba (born Walter Rosenberg), and a fellow prisoner Alfred Wetzler succeeded in escaping Auschwitz - Birkenau. As block registrars, both the men had been allowed relative (though always risky) freedom of movement in the camp and thus was able to observe the massive preparations underway at Birkenau of the entire killing machine for the eradication of Europe's last remaining Jewish community, the 800,000 Jews of Hungary.  The 2 men somehow made their way back to Slovakia where they sought out the Jewish Council (Judenrat) to warn them of the intending disaster.

The Vrba-Wetzler report was the first document about the Auschwitz death camp to reach the free world and to be accepted as credible. Its authenticity broke the barrier of skepticism and apathy that existed up to that point.  However, though their critical and alarming assessment was in the hands of Hungarian Jewish Leaders by April 28 or early May 1944, it is doubtful if the information it contained reached more than just a small number of of the prospective victims -during May and June 1944 about 427,000 Hungarian Jews boarded in good faith, the "resettlement" trains that were to carry them off to Auschwitz, where most of them were gassed on arrival.

Vrba, who emigrated to Canada at war's end , published his autobiography in England nearly 40 years ago.  Yet his and Wetzler's story has been carefully kept from Israel's Hebrew reading public and appears nowhere in any of the history texts that are part of the official curriculum. As Ruth Linn writes "Israeli history historiography was to follow the spirit of the courts policy at the Eichmann trial: silencing and removing challenging survivors from the gallery, and muting questions about the role of the Jewish Council in the deportations".

In 1998 Linn arranged for publication of the 1st Hebrew edition of Vrba memoirs.  In Escaping Auschwitz she establishes the chronology of Vrbas disappearance not only from Auschwitz, but also from the Israeli Holocaust narrative, skillfully exposing how the official Israeli historiography of the Holocaust has sought to suppress the story.

(fyi, , both my parents are from Hungary and they kept Yahrzeit for their families around Shavuot time which coincides with the deportation of the 427,000 Hungarian Jews.  That was the accepted yahrzeit of their towns.  Being that they were young and healthy and single at the time, my parents were sent to the Lager, the work camps rather than the crematoriums.My fathers first wife and daughter perished in the camps)

 

Distinguished Rabbanim and Media personalities, amv"sh

This is what I had planned to tell you at the event had you come.  Instead, allow me to email it to you. 

Firstly I believe that each and every one of you have a legit reason as per why you could not attend,  There is hopefully always tomorrow. I want to thank you for promoting this event in whatever capacity you have promoted it. Your promotion is key in igniting the spark and bringing Zechut to Hamonei Am. 

We urge you to encourage each and every Jew in chutz Learetz to at the very least partner with those who live in Eretz Yisroel, especially our brethren living in Judea and Samaria.  Kol Yisroel Areivim Zeh LeZeh, We are all responsible for one another.  We must support the settlers, the outposts and give them Chizuk. In this way, we too will have the Zechut,  the Merit of acquiring a portion of Eretz Yisroel and fulfilling the Mitzva of Yishuv Eretz Yisroel.  

--
Sincerely,

Robin Ticker
Activist emails sent to my list  are L'Ilui Nishmat Yisrael ben David Aryeh ob"m (Izzy - Kaplan)  a great activist and lover of Eretz Yisroel, Am Yisroel and the Torah. Yehi Zichrono Baruch.

Most of these emails are posted on Shemittahrediscovered.blogspot.com 

Personal emails to individuals will not be posted to my blog.