Rabbis: Regain control of Joseph's Tomb
Some 40 right-wing religious leaders, including Beit El Rabbi Zalman Melamed, tour Samaria. 'No foreign state will be established in the holy territories of the Land of Israel,' they say in special statement
The 40 rabbis, members of the Derech Emunah movement, visited Torah institutions in the Samaria communities, agricultural centers and local council offices, and stated that Jewish control of the area must be maintained.
The tour's most senior participants were Beit El Rabbi Zalman Melamed and chief rabbis of cities, towns and communities, as well as yeshiva heads.
"We came to Samaria as a delegation representing hundreds of rabbis from all over the country, in order to strengthen and support the Israeli settlement in Samaria," the rabbis wrote in a special statement issued at the end of the tour.
"We felt that this was obvious, especially after the grave acts of murder in Itamar and Joseph's Tomb. We came to strengthen the residents and were strengthened ourselves by the courage, bravery and sense of justice beating in Samaria."
The rabbis called on the Israeli government to "clarify to the entire world that the Land of Israel belongs to the people of Israel only, and will remain in their hands forever.
"No foreign state will be established in the holy territories of the Land of Israel. A Jewish government will be the only one to control Judea and Samaria, and the people of Israel will move freely and safely in all of their country's territories."
The Derech Emunah rabbis called on the government to "halt any negotiations with the Arab terrorists", claiming that "their 'security organizations' murdered Ben-Yosef Livnat – may the Lord avenge his blood – in cold blood, just like they have murdered several times in the past, often with weapons supplied to them by irresponsible statesmen."
Cherlow: Hasidim risking their lives
As for the control of Joseph's Tomb, the rabbis wrote that "Israel must regain control of all of Judea and Samaria. It must begin immediately at Joseph's Tomb, and free access to the tomb must be allowed just like to any other national holy site."
The delegation visited the communities of Bruchin, Har Bracha, Itamar, Elon Moreh, Havat Gilad and Shavei Shomron, and met with Council Head Gershon Mesika, Samaria Settlers Committee Chairman Benny Katzover, members of the Homesh First grassroots organization and others.
Meanwhile, Rabbi Yuval Cherlow, head of the Petah Tikvah hesder yeshiva, addressed the issue of Jews infiltrating Joseph's Tomb In an article which will be published this weekend.
According to Cherlow, Hasidim entering Nablus at night, without coordinating their visit with the army, are violating orders and risking their lives.
The rabbi stressed, however, that the Hasidim should not have been shot because of their behavior.
"They deserve to be punished, the entrance issue must be solved and different matters related to it must be dealt with. But this does not mean under any circumstance that they were thrown to the dogs," he wrote.
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