Members of the Ramat Ephraim neighborhood synagogue in
Netanya arriving for shacharis on Shabbos parshas
Shemini were shocked to discover extensive damage to the
synagogue as a result of malicious arson perpetrated in four
different locations in the synagogue.
Fortunately, the flames did not reach the aron
kodesh, and the sifrei Torah were not harmed.
However, sifrei kodesh and furniture were heavily
damaged. Neighbors of the synagogue, who noticed the fire at
1:00 A.M. Shabbos night, called the Fire Department which
extinguished the fire.
Synagogue members relate that exactly a month ago on Shabbos
night the synagogue was vandalized: charity boxes were
stolen and equipment was destroyed. In addition, every
Shabbos night during the past month, the nearby Me'ir Yaakov
synagogue has been vandalized and heavily damaged.
Members of the synagogue have filed repeated complaints with
Netanya Police about the attacks on the synagogue.
Furthermore, they report that every Shabbos night, the park
near the synagogue swarms with juvenile delinquents that
terrorize area residents.
HaRav Eliezer Sorotzkin, the rav of the Ramat Ephraim
neighborhood and the rav of the central synagogue on
Lochamei Hageta'ot Street, wrote urgent letters to the mayor
of Netanya, M. Fireberg, and to the commander of the Netanya
Police Department, Deputy Commander Avi Bidan. In his
letters, he demands protection for residents of the
neighborhood and for the local synagogues. He called upon
education and welfare bodies in the city to deal with this
violent group of youngsters, and to the Police Department to
apprehend the perpetrators of the arson and bring them to
justice.
