(JNi.media) The Jerusalem Givat Ze’ev congregation whose synagogue has been slated for demolition, on Monday night received a temporary, mobile structure which was positioned in a public area, next to the existing building, Walla reported. This followed a delay of the demolition, in accordance with the outline obtained with the consent of the congregation and the state. Once the mobile synagogue is connected to electricity, sewage and water, the Torah scrolls will be moved there, and the temporary synagogue will open its gates. At the same time the state will begin the dismantling—not the destruction—of Ayelet HaShahar synagogue, allegedly built on private Arab land. In the near future a new, permanent building will be erected on land that is not private or claimed by alleged Arab owners.
Placing the mobile shul as a substitute was made in accordance with the instructions of the cabinet and the defense ministry, in coordination with the Givat Zeev Council—which issued it a building permit. It followed the state’s urgent appeal to the Supreme Court Monday, for a stay of 48 hours of dismantling the synagogue, which was supposed to start Tuesday, for fear of “bloodshed and ‘price tag’ outbursts.” The court is expected to rule on the appeal Tuesday, in an attempt to put out a fire the high court itself started. Built more than 20 years ago, the synagogue’s existence was challenged by extreme left wing group Yesh Din, which claimed the synagogue stands on privately-owned Arab land. The court sided with the plaintiffs, ignoring congregants’ proof of legal purchase, and the fact that a different Arab owner claims the sale was legal. This was in keeping with the court’s decades of opting to destroy Jewish homes and institutions rather than to call for a fair settlement with the claimants.
The demonstrators against the synagogue demolition, warning that such an act would be tantamount to destroying the Temple, since a synagogue is known as “Mikdash Me’at,” Hebrew for “replica of the Sanctuary.” One of the banners even read: “Supreme Court = Titus,” referring to Titus Flāvius Caesar Vespasiānus Augustus, who in the year 70 besieged and captured Jerusalem, then destroyed the city and the Second Temple. However, the decision to dismantle the Givat Ze’ev replica of the Sanctuary recalled an earlier chapter in Jewish history, when King Herod wanted to renovate the Temple, but the Sanhedrin, who didn’t trust the old Edomite fox, ordered that the renovation work had to be done one brick at a time — take out one brick and replace it with a new one. And so, the more appropriate sign would have been “Supreme Court = Herod.”
Meanwhile, on Monday, the synagogue rabbi, Rabbi Azriel Cohen, reacted to reports on the agreement reached regarding the expulsion from the synagogue and its dismantling by unequivocally denying those reports, declaring that the struggle continues and that worshipers will not leave the synagogue.
