Rabbi Eitan Shnerb, whose daughter Rina was murdered on Friday morning, thwarted a terror attack earlier this year. Rabbi Shnerb was moderately wounded in the attack and his son was seriously wounded.
Rabbi Shnerb is the battalion rabbi of the 8101st Battalion of the Alexandroni Reserve Brigade. In February of this year, while serving in the reserves, Shnerb and his assistant went out to check the eiruv (a makeshift barrier used for purposes of Jewish law on Shabbat) around the military post.
During the tour, the rabbi spotted two armed terrorists hiding on the slope below the post and alerted soldiers who captured them. The rabbi received a certificate of recognition from the division commander for his swift life-saving action.
In an interview with Arutz Sheva following the incident, Rabbi Shnerb said: "I was told to check the eiruv. We went on a tour around the post and we also passed the slopes below the posts to see if the rope was positioned properly."
''We encircled the entire post and suddenly I see two Palestinian Authority Arabs staking out the post. They were hiding behind a rock and observing the post from all directions. I went to call the squad on alert and within a few minutes of quick but quiet action, they flanked them to the left and surprised them to the west. The terrorists simply didn't even have time to resist and their guns and weapons fell to the ground."
Rabbi Shnerb noted that the battalion's rabbis are also soldiers. "This is the teaching which the late Rabbi Rontzky espoused in his day - that the rabbis are also soldiers with all their equipment and weapons. We've been in the battalion for twenty years already and alongside our role as rabbis, we're engaged in fighting."
"The wonderful Shabbatot (Sabbaths) with the battalion at the military post, especially here in the Golani Brigade, including the festive meals and prayers, reflect the Jewish people in their glory - all together, religious and non-religious soldiers. And of course thanks to the women and children who are left alone on Shabbat and deserve the greatest accolades," Rabbi Shnerb concluded.