Following repeated cases of harassment in recent weeks by fringe elements against Arab workers in Jerusalem, both in the sanitation and infrastructure sectors, Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Leon initiated an appeal to the Jerusalem rabbis and asked them to publicly publish a Torah opinion regarding this charged issue.
The rabbis of Jerusalem who got into the thick of it and heard about the cases, published a firm letter that makes it clear that this is absolutely forbidden. "Unfortunately, the news has reached us about people from the outskirts of the camp, whose blood boils in their heart upon hearing the terrible rumors, and who behave violently towards workers engaged in the service of the residents of our city," read a call signed by the rabbis.
"We have come here to express our protest, because apart from the fact that this is completely contrary to the way of our holy Torah, as the Sages said, the power of this nation is only in the mouth. There is also a matter of protecting and saving lives, as warned by those in charge of security affairs," the letter further states.
"Moreover, there is a great loss here, that those workers will not come to work because of the nagging fear, and this is a loss for all residents."
At the end of the letter, the rabbis write firm words about the seriousness of the matter and warn. "That's why we want to warn young and old, that there will be no one to fight with those workers. And each and every one will warn the people of his household and the young people whose blood is hot, to stay away from anything of violence, God forbid, neither violence in actions nor violence in mouth, as at's a a matter of life and death."
The letter is signed by several prominent rabbis, including Rabbi Moshe Tzdaka, the head of Porat Yosef Yeshiva; Rabbi Avigdor Nevenzahl, the rabbi of the Old City; Rabbi Asher Weiss, head of Darchei Torah institutions; Rabbi Yitzchak Cohen, the rabbi of the Shmuel Hanavi neighborhood; Rabbi Reuven Elbaz, the head of Or Hachaim Yeshiva; Rabbi Shalom Arush, head of Chut Shel Chesed institutions; and Jerusalem's chief rabbis, Rabbi Shlomo Moshe Amar and Rabbi Aryeh Shtern. Israel's Chief Rabbis, Rabbi David Lau and Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef, also joined this special call.
As mentioned, the initiator of this letter is Mayor Moshe Leon, who has received numerous complaints in recent weeks from the city's residents. These complaints revolve around issues related to insufficient street cleanliness and unaddressed deficiencies. This comes in light of concerns of workers from East Jerusalem about coming to the neighborhoods. This is occurring after several incidents of harassment and even physical attacks have been reported.
The Mayor of the city gathered a special situation assessment, and following it, he decided to reach out to the rabbis of Jerusalem to present the situation as it stands. He emphasized, "We are in an extremely sensitive period, and the Jerusalem Municipality is doing everything to maintain the routine as usual. We closely monitor all the workers and ensure that no expressions of support for terrorism are being promoted. In cases of necessity, we address the situation together with the Israeli police. However, the majority of these workers are hardworking people seeking to provide for their families and are not involved in these matters. The call from the rabbis of Jerusalem requires each one of us to caution the young and the old, not to engage in harassment of any person and to preserve the peace and tranquility in our city of Jerusalem."