Dispute Over Secret Tunnel at Chabad-Lubavitch Headquarters in Brooklyn Sparks Chaos and Arrests

2024-01-10 14:54:00
A group of rabbis pose in front of the Chabad-Lubavitch headquarters in Brooklyn (REUTERS/David Dee Delgado/File)

Nine people face charges following police were called to a New York synagogue, where officials say a dispute broke out over attempts to close a secret tunnel leading to the Chabad-Lubavitch movement’s headquarters building.

Officers responded Monday followingnoon to reports of a “disorderly group” outside the Brooklyn synagogue. Dozens of people appeared to protest the arrival of a cement truck that a Chabad spokesman, Rabbi Motti Seligson, said was there to repair the wall following an unauthorized passageway had been built connecting the sanctuary to the building where The Hasidic movement has its headquarters.

Videos posted on social media show a chaotic scene as police try to keep the group away from a damaged wall of the synagogue that led to the hallway, with people shouting and some pushing wooden benches toward officers. Yellow caution tape was posted inside the synagogue on Monday and white cloth was placed in front of the damaged wall, which people used to “illegally enter” the building, police said.

According to police, nine people between the ages of 19 and 22 face charges for the incident, including criminal mischief and reckless endangerment.

Seligson said the hall was built by a “group of extremist students” not formally affiliated with the Chabad movement. The building has since been closed while it undergoes a structural safety review, he said.

When repairs were attempted on Monday, “extremists” stormed the synagogue, “vandalizing the sanctuary, in an effort to preserve its unauthorized access,” according to Seligson’s statement. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton

“This is obviously deeply troubling for the Lubavitch movement and the Jewish community around the world,” Seligson said. “We hope and pray that we can quickly restore the sanctity and decorum of this holy place.”

Police have not provided details regarding when or why the tunnel was built. The clash illustrates a long-standing division within the Chabad-Lubavitch movement, said Rabbi David Bashevkin, host of the “18Forty” podcast on the Jewish faith. The Chabad-Lubavitch movement is one of the fastest growing Jewish organizations in the United States.

Menachem Mendel Schneerson, a leader of the movement considered by some to be the most influential rabbi in modern history, worked at the Brooklyn synagogue, located at 770 Eastern Parkway and known as “the 770.” His death in 1994 sparked a period of deep mourning for the movement, Bashevkin said. But it also led to disagreements regarding his future because there was no successor, he added.

While many in the Chabad movement focus on Schneerson’s work to make Judaism more accessible, Bashevkin said a much smaller group tends to use disruptive tactics in an effort to expand the 770 building.

Supporters of the expansion said the building has long been overcrowded, according to the Associated Press, which reported that some in the community felt plans to create additional space were taking too long.

Rabbis at the Chabad-Lubavitch headquarters in New York (REUTERS/David Dee Delgado)

Seligson told the Washington Post that the national Chabad movement became aware of the passageway’s existence in recent weeks following local reports appeared online. When repairs were attempted on Monday, “extremists” stormed the synagogue, “vandalizing the sanctuary, in an effort to preserve its unauthorized access,” according to Seligson’s statement.

A New York City Department of Buildings official told the AP that as of Tuesday night, the results of the synagogue inspection were still pending.

Rabbi Yehuda Krinsky, president of Chabad-Lubavitch headquarters, said in a statement Monday that while the movement’s community was hurt by the damage to the building, it was also touched by an outpouring of support.

“The sanctity of the synagogue will be restored,” Krinsky said.

(c) The Washington Post 2024

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