A group of soldiers who have been stationed on Israel’s northern border for several weeks was left this week without food for Shabbat.
The soldiers, part of a haredi unit made up of veterans of the Netzach Yehuda battalion, had begun to organize a trip to Tzfat to buy supplies but instead received a shipment from a surprising donor
Yesterday, one of the soldiers had spoken with a soldier from a different unit, who had given him the phone number of the grandson of the Satmar Rebbe and assured him that the grandson would supply everything needed.
The haredi soldier related that today, he had called the Rebbe's grandson. “I told him that we were a group of ten soldiers in combat readiness on the border. Today, a truck arrived with students from the Satmar Yeshiva to deliver us boxes of all kinds of excellent food.”
The Satmar Hassidic community has historically been among the most extreme opponents of the State of Israel and IDF service for haredim.
“I asked them where the rest of the food in the truck was headed, and they said they were delivering Shabbat meals to every outpost on the northern border.”
“Next time anyone asks who is feeding the soldiers on the northern border, say that it was the Satmar Rebbe, who gave instructions that there should be plenty of food for every single soldier.”
“They thought of all the details too, like a Kiddush cup (a ceremonial wine goblet used in the blessing that begins Shabbat meals). They requested only that we not photograph them.”