New York | The New York Times
A decadeslong battle over the direction of one of New York's most prominent Hasidic Jewish groups ended in chaos when part of the group clashed with local police over a tunnel secretly built to the movement's main synagogue. , one of the worst significant religious sites in the American city.
The tunnel, a passageway between the group's headquarters, the ChabadLubavitcher movement and at least one adjacent property, was discovered late last year. Last Monday (8) a concrete truck was used to fill it, but some Hasidic Jews tried to prevent the action and preserve the building.
Police were called and officers said they found a group of men breaking through a wall of the prayer room leading to the tunnel. Nine people were arrested after an argument.
Motti Seligson, a Lubavitch spokesman, described those who created the tunnel as a group of “extremist students.” “This is obviously troubling for the Lubavitch movement and for the Jewish community around the world,” he said.
The conflict occurred at 770 Eastern Parkway in Brooklyn, where the movement's global headquarters is located. The place is simply nicknamed “The 770”. It is not yet known exactly who built the tunnel, how they did it and what they wanted to achieve with it.
But two men who said they spoke with some of those who tore down the synagogue's wall said the reason was to speed up the synagogue's expansion, a move they attributed to the leader of the Lubavitch movement, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, known as “Rebbe,” say. he asked more than three decades ago.
The desired expansion is part of a conflict over the future of the movement that has existed for at least 30 years. Since the Rebbe's death in 1994, the Hasidic group has been mired in internal strife. Since then, no successor has been named.
The informal leadership of the Lubavitchers strives to fulfill the Rebbe's teachings and vision. But a smaller faction within the movement claims that the Rebbe is actually the Messiah, and some within that group believe that he never actually died. Legal disputes over the role of 770, including whether a plaque on an adjacent building could mark the Rebbe as deceased, have dragged on for years.
Members of the Hasidic community have pointed out that a group of Messianic students were likely responsible for building the tunnel, which they said was a way to show respect to the Lubavitcher Rebbe, whom they refer to in the present tense. “They did this to expand 770 and make it bigger,” said a man who identified himself as Zalmy Grossman and said he knew some of the inmates. “They came to fulfill the wishes of the Rebbe.”
Omri Rahamim Bahar, 22, has been studying 770 since he came to New York from Israel four years ago. He said other parishioners were frustrated by leaders' inaction in expanding the building to accommodate crowds during services. So some began taking action on their own, including building a tunnel from an adjacent building leading to the sanctuary wall.
After the cement truck arrived last Monday, some of the men decided to enter the sanctuary from the tunnel. A video showed at least one man emerging from the dustcovered tunnel to applause from supporters.
“Of course it is difficult and it is not good to see the main wall of the sanctuary with a hole in it, but I know there is no other way,” Bahar said.
Videos taken from inside the building on Monday showed scenes of rioting, with mostly young Hasidic Jews sitting in the tunnel and apparently trying to prevent it from being filled.
Videos and photos also showed some men tearing wooden panels off walls and groups using large benches to prevent police from intervening, then clashing with officers before an officer appeared and used some type of spray to disperse the crowd disperse.
News of the chaos spread quickly on social media, leading to a flood of antiSemitic posts on social media, particularly on X.
A spokesman for the city's building department said inspectors were still on site at 770 Tuesday evening, assessing the structural integrity of the building following the damage.