Mike Huckabee Visits Kever Yosef

Despite the late hour and high security risk, former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee joined the over 5,000 misspalleim last night (Sunday) at kever Yosef in Shchem. Per the Oslo accords, the ancient city of Shchem where Yosef Hatzadik is buried, is located in ‘zone A’ which is under the full authority of the Palestinian Authority, and access to Jews on a regular basis is forbidden.

From time to time the IDF in coordination with PA police, secure the area and allow a limited number of Jews to enter the site and daven. The visits which are often confronted by violence and unrest form the local Arab population, has to be made at the dead of night in order to mitigate the high security risk.



Huckabee was joined by head of the Shomron regional council Yossi Dagan, and other prominent activists, including MK Betzalal Smotrich.

After reciting Tehillim at the Kever, Huckabee spoke about the sad reality that Jews can’t freely come daven at holy places, and have to resort to coming at the dead of night.

“I wish to recognize, even on this week in which the President will come to Israel, that it’s still very difficult for many people to come to the holy sites, and it’s my prayer, as I come here with you, that the holy sites that you and that I embrace will be accessible, and that we will not have to come in the dead of night in order to pray and seek the Lord’s face,” said Huckabee.

“It should not be that way, and I hope the day comes when the freedom for God’s people to come and to pray is uninhibited and unhindered by any violence by those who seek to prevent you from being able to say this prayer. That you could do it in the daylight, in the sunshine, and not in the darkness of night,” he added.

Sharing his own feelings of coming to shchem at the dead of night with the smell of tear gas in the air, Huckabee said.

“It’s an amazing experience to have to come to this type of difficulty, just to be able to come to a holy site for Jews, and frankly even for Christians; to pay tribute to Joseph. To have to do it at the dead of night, under arm guard, with the smell of tear gas in the air, burning tires along the route”.

Huckabee also pointed out the sharp contrast between the freedom enjoyed by Arabs in Israel, and the constrictions on Jews in Yehuda and Shomron.

“It’s a stark reminder that unlike it is in the heart of Israel, where the Israeli government protects every Muslim to access their holy site. In Judea and Samaria Jewish people to not have unhindered access to holy sites without having to go to extraordinary lengths in order to be able to access these places of prayer”, said Huckabee.

By Eli B. (INN contributed to this article)

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