Rabbi Eliyahu Medina, the Sephardic rabbi of Jerusalem's Jewish Quarter, is hospitalized in very serious condition at Shaare Zedek Medical Center after suffering a severe head injury in a fall down the stairs of a synagogue.
The incident occurred in the early morning hours. Rabbi Medina had completed the sunrise morning prayer and was the last worshipper to leave the synagogue.
For reasons that remain unclear, he lost his balance on the staircase, fell, and struck his head with great force.
Because the next prayer service at the synagogue was not scheduled until later, the rabbi lay injured and bleeding for an extended period before anyone passed by or noticed him.
He was eventually discovered by the synagogue's sexton, who was shocked to find him suffering from significant blood loss and in a severely impaired state.
Magen David Adom paramedics provided life-saving treatment at the scene before evacuating him urgently to the hospital. He was admitted in very serious condition, sedated and on a ventilator.
His family and associates have asked the public to pray for the recovery of Rabbi Eliyahu Raphael, the son of Saada, among the other ill if Israel.