Gilad Erdan at the bar mitzvah
Gilad Erdan at the bar mitzvahHaim Twito

Coalition Chairman David Bitan (Likud) and Opposition Leader Yitzhak Herzog (Zionist Union) on Thursday joined several other MKs from both the right and left in a bar mitzvah party organized by Chabad for 120 orphans from all over Israel.

This is the 26th annual bar mitzvah party, and it is the largest bar mitzvah celebration in the world.

The party is held on the 11th of Nissan, which is the birthday of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson.

The boys and their families began arriving at the Western Wall on Thursday morning. Upon arrival, they received their gift of tefillin (phylacteries) and were called up to the Torah for the first time in their lives.

After the prayers, the bar mitzvah boys danced and sang happy Jewish songs together with the organizers. Some of the participants lifted boys on their shoulders, celebrating their happiness.

Many people cried during the party, happy to see these children, who had each lost a parent, celebrating together with their friends from all sectors of Israeli society.

The other Western Wall visitors wondered what had caused such great happiness just before Pesach (Passover). One glance at the sign told them all they needed to know: The sign said, "Kollel Chabad presents the Central Bar Mitzvah Celebration for 120 Bar Mitzvah Boys."