News Brief

(IsraelNN.com) The head of the Chabad-Lubavitch Hassidic movement's center in the northeastern Bolivian town of Rurrenabaque told Ynet on Thursday that he has hired a lawyer to handle a number of issues following police closure of the center. Police forces had raided the center a number of times in recent days and arrested a number of Israeli tourists who were staying there.

Rabbi Aharon Fraiman, who was almost arrested himself, initially said "An anti-Semitic restaurateur who thinks we are hurting his livelihood is doing everything to get us out of here." He added that the police refused to give him a reason for the raids.

Following the closure, the rabbi said "Rumors floating around say that it has something to do with an assassination attempt on the president, but on the other hand, the media is reporting all kinds of other things, like that the Chabad center here is involved in dealing drugs and the like." Last week in the city of Santa Cruz, Bolivian police killed three European men they said were connected to an attempt to kill President Evo Morales and Vice President Alvaro Garcia.

As a center from which tourists leave for trips to the jungles and swamp areas in northern Bolivia, Rurrenabaque is one of the central tourist attractions for travelers in Bolivia, including many Israeli backpackers.

Full story