On Monday, the Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gabir, announced that in response to the violent attack carried out by left-wing activists against the worshipers in Dizengoff Square, he will arrive at the place this coming Thursday and hold a mass evening prayer there.
In a message he published he wrote: "On this Yom Kippur, we saw haters who are trying to expel Judaism from the public sphere. Israel is a Jewish country! And a democratic one. Next Thursday I will hold an evening prayer in the square, the public is invited!"
The Minister of Science, Ofir Akunis, commented on this at the beginning of the cabinet meeting and said: "I call on Ben-Gvir to move the prayer to one of the synagogues in the city."
"These days are very sad days for the Jewish people, in Israel and in the Diaspora. Hard days, sad days. I think Minister Ben-Gvir will do the right thing if he moves the prayer to one of the synagogues in the city of Tel Aviv. There are dozens of synagogues in the city of Tel Aviv. Some of them are very close to the square Dizengoff, some of them are not far from there. The Great Synagogue is an impressive and magnificent place, it is not far from the square. There is another long line of synagogues."
Akunis continued to say: "I suggest to all the leadership in the State of Israel, to all of them, and I include this first and foremost on myself, on my members in the coalition, and on the opposition, to stop making high statements. To step down from them, to calm the flames. To enter the holiday of Sukkot in which the Jewish people are commanded to be happy (And thou shalt rejoice in thy feast). This is a mitzvah, to be happy and act in the spirit of Sukkot, a holiday of unity among the people of Israel."
