At the beginning of Hanukkah, an IDF soldier contacted Kikar HaShabbat's Israel Shapira with surprising news: "I heard you're an expert on Lebanon. I read your articles in Kikar HaShabbat about Gaza, Lebanon, and the Maccabee tombs."
"Here's something that will amaze you," the soldier continued.
The soldier, who entered one of the houses in Tayr Harfa village in southern Lebanon during operational activity, discovered a surprising find: an ancient menorah displayed prominently in a glass cabinet.
"We entered what looked like a typical Arab house in the area," the soldier testified. "Suddenly, inside an display case, I saw a menorah. It wasn't thrown aside or neglected, but placed in the cabinet in a position of honor."
The soldier noted that he conducted an additional search of the house for other Jewish items but found nothing.
The soldier took the menorah in his pack. Afterward, the platoon flattened the militants' village under orders from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Israel Katz, and IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi.
The menorah, made of metal with a plain wooden base without inscription or signature, raises many questions about its origin.
Israel Shapira belives that the menorah belonged to a Jew from the historic Tyre community, which existed with a small number of Jews in the area until the 1980s.
An especially interesting fact is that Tyre and Sidon, according to some halakhic opinions, are considered part of the Land of Israel. Because of this, local Jews did not observe a second day of holidays, similar to residents of Israel.
The village of Tayr Harfa, located seventeen kilometers south of Tyre and about five kilometers north of the Israel-Lebanon border, was for years a Hezbollah stronghold. The terrorist organization used buildings in and around the village as military facilities and ammunition stores.
On November 16, 2024, as part of Operation Iron Swords, the IDF took control of the village - that's when the soldier found the menorah in the abandoned house. Six days later, on November 22, the demolition of terrorist infrastructure in the area was completed.
The discovery of the menorah, which now burns in the soldier's home this Hanukkah, represents a moving historical closure.
For the first time in decades, the menorah, which survived many years in the heart of enemy territory, has returned to Jewish hands, as a silent testimony to a magnificent Jewish community that existed in the area for generations. Who knows how many years have passed since Hanukkah candles were last lit in it?
Kikar HaShabbat contributed to this article.
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