Demolition
DemolitionFlash 90

The haredi community in Beit Shemesh has slammed the city's municipality for demolishing a synagogue while the Torah scroll was still inside it, Kikar Hashabbat reported.

According to the residents, the municipal workers did not even bother to remove the holy books before demolishing the synagogue.

The synagogue, housed in a caravan built four years ago, serves the community of "Hanikhei Hayeshivot" in Ramah C. Early on Tuesday morning, municipal workers arrived at the site and completely demolished it.

The residents blame the municipality, claiming that the supervisors and workers who demolished the building did not respect the holiness of the site and did not pay attention to the fact that they were demolishing a house of worship and a holy place.

In addition to the Torah scroll and other holy books, all of the equipment and furniture in the synagogue was in the building at the time of the demolition.

One of the worshipers told Kikar Hashabbat, "Even if legally speaking the municipality needed to evacuate the synagogue, it is still expected that in a Jewish city with a haredi majority and a religious mayor that a minimum of care will be taken to respect the holiness of the Torah scroll which was inside."

The Beit Shemesh municipality told Arutz Sheva: "A demolition of new construction on plot 609 was carried out. According to the findings at the scene, it seemed to have been a preschool. The supervisory work was carried out after residents complained of illegal construction at the site in the middle of the night."

"During the supervisory staffs' activities, there did not seem to be a synagogue operating at the site."