Leaders of the nation gather • 172 photos from the protest rally in Manhattan

Massive rally against recruitment decree in the Holy Land, attended according to various estimates about 100 thousand people, led by Gedolei Yisrael - led by Satmar Rebbes – for world Jewry to cry out against the decrees of the yeshiva world and against the plan to recruit the Torah scholars to the IDF ranks, has left a great impression on the participants.

The beginning of the rally started on Shabbos Hagadol, when the Satmar Rebbe announced its existence in his sermon in the Beit Midrash in Kiryat Yoel, after countless discussions and conversations about it with people from Israel, who updated him on the decrees being raised against the Torah world.

The Rebbe insisted that this Assembly should join all of Orthodox Jewry as a whole, and only this can be a guarantee of success. The desire was not completely filled, since the clear orders of Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky and Hgray"l Steinman not to operate through demonstrations prevented large parts of the Lithuanian public from participating and many yeshiva heads told their students not to go out to the demonstration. Yet others came because according to Hgr"ch and Hgray"l they specifically ordered that to the residents of Israel, but in the U.S. there is a benefit of having the demonstration.



From Lakewood alone there were 40 buses in the first stage, and due to high demand, an twenty additional buses were recruited, and later the school buses, to transport thousands more who wanted to go. "Buses were not air conditioned. Hot weather does not allow for such a long trip in this kind of transportation, but given the importance of the campaign, no one looked at the convenience and we all went at the height of enthusiasm", said the passenger. Hundreds of other buses left Kiryat Yoel, Monsey, Square and dozens of other concentrations.

Towards four o'clock in the afternoon, the flow began to stream from Borough Park, Williamsburg and Flatbush. Approximately 6000 yeshiva students went on a huge march in the rally area, some dressed in sackcloth, while others held signs to express their solidarity with their fellow yeshiva students of the yeshiva world in Israel.
According to the plan the presidency stage was to contain five floors. However, due to the numerous rabbis, Rebbes and Roshei Yeshiva who asked to participate in the rally (two thousand) they were forced to add three more storeys. The police, who were not prepared for such an amount, was forced to close a number of times the access roads to the podium to allow respectable deployment for the Gedolei Yisrael.

"To praise Aharon that he didn’t change"

The assembly was transferred live to the Satmar beit midrash in Jerusalem on Yonah Street, where hundreds watched the gathering, which began with Mincha for the time 17:15. Thereafter, Rabbi Yaakov Weiss, a Rosh Yeshiva of Satmar yeshiva in Kiryat Yoel began his sermon. Next, the Assembly chairman Harav Yitzchak Glick, Safra Ddeina Rabbinical Association, the guidance, and invited Rabbi Asher Kalmanovitz, Mir Rosh Yeshiva of Flatbush to say Tehillim. At this point, Rabbi Eliyahu Ber Wachtfoigel Rosh Yeshiva South Fallsburg was invited to speak.

Line of speakers also included Rebbe of Galanta, Rabbi Yissachar Dov Katz, Ab"d Dushinski, Rabbi Noach Isaac Elbaum, Ab"d Queens, Rabbi Pinchas Jung of Monsey who spoke in English to the local media, Hagaon Rabbi Yaakov Horowitz, Rosh Yeshiva Beit Meir, Rabbi Nachman Yaakov Shtauber, Ra"m in Yeshivat Queens Satmar and Rabbi Yaakov Weiss.

As a representative of the Badatz Eideh Charedi appeared Rabbi Naftali Hertzke Frankel, a member of the Beth Din Zedek, who accepted upon the tens of thousands of the kingdom of Heaven. Later, Lakewood Mayor expressed his gratitude to the police and the municipality for the great help and success in the event. The speeches were closed by Rabbi Mordechai Elazar Hirsch, CEO Williamsburg Satmar institutions.

Despite the long gallery of speakers, speakers shortened their statements, and two hours after the start of the gathering it come to an end. As a special gesture, the municipality provided free trains to the passengers who live in nearby towns, and tens of thousands of participants were able to return quickly to their homes.

"We pray and hope that the cohesive sound and crying out against the recruitment decree which came out here, using enthusiastic words of rabbis will seep into the Israeli authorities, and they will understand that the Torah will not move from us and will not allow any compromise regarding the yeshiva world", said the organizers of the rally, who expressed great satisfaction at thousands of Beis Yisrael who obeyed the Gedolei Torah and Chassidus, and united together for the success of the rally.

Minutes after the end of the rally, Hgre"d Wachtflogel went up to the Satmar Rebbe and complimented him on the success of the rally.

The Rebbe remarked when he went into his vehicle before leaving the place, that he is sure that the Divrei Yoel, descended from heaven to attend the rally and congratulated all participants.

This afternoon, the Rebbe will visit the grave of the Divrei Yoel, and his father the Baruch Moshe, of blessed memory, to supplicate in prayer for cancellation of decrees.

ההכנות - רגע לפני

עת האסף המקנה

אל מול פני המנורה

משאי הקודש

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