Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau, the Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv - Jaffa, gave an exclusive interview to Arutz Sheva news, in which he discussed the Fast of Gedaliah. Rabbi Lau explained that following the assassination, "the small Jewish community left the country and fled to Egypt and other places." He advocated fulfilling the "mitzvah to settle the land" and encouraged all Jewish people "to do some soul-searching." The Fast of Gedaliah takes place on Wednesday from sunrise to sundown. The full story of Gedaliah can be found in the Book of Jeremiah Chapter 40.