Wednesday War News: 6 Mortars Fired From Gaza. IDF Kills 4 Gaza Terrorists — 1 Had Kalashnikovs; Arabs Riot Near Jerusalem, IDF Nabs 2 Terrorists
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Two More Mortars Hit Nahal Oz [Near Fuel Terminal]
Gaza Fires Four Mortars at Nahal Oz
IDF Troops Gun Down Four Terrorists Near Gaza Border [Near Kissufim Crossing] By Yaakov Lappin (Jerusalem Post)
Related report; Dead Arab Gunmen Had Kalashnikovs
Arabs Riot Near Jerusalem [Northeast of Ma’aleh HaChamisha]
Election Postscript: Shas Chareidi Mayor for Beit Shemesh
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For Mayor;
Abutbol – 46.7
Lerner – 28.4
Vaknin – 24.9
For City Council:
UTJ – 5
B’Yachad – 3
Shas – 3
Dor Acher (Balayish) – 2
Likud – 2
Mishpacha Acat (Russians) – 2
Labor – 1
Tov – 1
Chen – 0
Shas Chareidi candidate Moshe Abutbul has apparently been swept into office as Mayor of Beit Shemesh garnering 52% of the vote to B’yachad’s Shalom Lerner with 30% and incumbent Mayor Danny Vaknin a distant 3rd with 17.7% of the vote in a campaign which degenerated into a host of dirty tricks and “stinking manuevers”, mostly by coordinated by one candidate’s campaign, in the final 72 hours before the vote and in which there were a slew of voting irregularities (i.e. torn or non-existent Shalom Lerner ballot slips at certain voting stations) on election day.
Tuesday War News: Kassams Launched at Sderot, Nab “Pal” Crossing Gaza Border; IDF Finds 50 lbs of Explosives, Stonings of IDF, Civilians, 9 Arabs Nabbed, IDF Nabs “Pal” in Possession of Explosives
Kassam Rocket Hits Open Area Near Sderot; No Wounded Reported
IDF Paratroopers Arrest Palestinian Who Crosses Gaza Border Fence
IDF Found 50 lbs of Explosives Ingredients
Arabs Wound Israeli [in Stonings] Near Bethlehem
Nine Palestinian Fugitives Arrested in Hebron by IDF
Rock Attacks in Kalkilyeh Area
IDF Soldiers Catch Palestinian in Possession of Bomb Near Jenin
The Test of Mettle: The Beit Shemesh Response in a National Crisis
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David Morris, the esteemed founder and Chairman of Lema’an Achai which assists families in need and enables them to get back on their feet and to achieve financial and social independence, wrote the email below making several very important points in support of Shalom Lerner who was one of the chief architects of the Beit Shemesh response in helping populations in the North during the massive Hezbollah Katyusha bombardments of the Lebanon conflict of the summer of 2006.
What Morris describes below seems indicative of the love, caring and sensitivity which Shalom Lerner will bring to Beit Shemesh once elected mayor. MB
Beit Shemesh: Revolution of Inclusiveness or of Exclusion to Most?
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With 30 hours to go to national municipal elections in Israel, Beit Shemesh held a Mayoralty debate on Sunday night in the Simcha Hall of Beit Knesset Beit Tefillah Yona Avraham between the two main candidates, Shalom Lerner of B’Yachad and the Shas/Gimmel candidate Moshe Abutbul. The debate was extremely well organized despite having been chiselled together at the last minute.
The debate came on the heels of a controversial 14 page glossy promo piece by Abutbul’s campaign which was distributed by their campaign activists (ostensibly frum) during mid-afternoon on Friday afternoon, Erev Shabbos while most other observant Jews were cleaning, cooking and preparing for Shabbos.
Sunday, Monday War News: Kassam Rocket Hits Negev, Gaza Crossings Closed After 60+ Rockets; Arabs Stone Jewish Driver, IDF Nabs 24 Terrorists, Gunfire at IDF, Rock Attacks, Molotovs Thrown at Jews
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Kassam Rocket Strikes Open Area in Western Negev; None Wounded
Gaza Crossings Closed, Fuel Shortage to be Discussed
Arabs Stone and Wound Israeli Driver [Near Abud, Northwest of Ramallah]
IDF Troops Arrest 24 Palestinians During Operations
3 Molotov Cocktails Thrown at Israeli Cars Near Bethlehem; None Hurt
Parsha Vayeira 5769: Stark Contrasts Between Chessed and the Ways of Sodom
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Our Parsha opens with Hashem, as we understand, visiting Avraham Aveinu on the 3rd day after Bris Milah, when Avraham was at the height of his pain following the circumcision, as Rashi indicates, “to inquire about his welfare.” (Metsuda Linear Chumash rendering of Rashi on Perek 18, posuk 1)
It’s not like Hashem needed to pay a visit to ascertain Avraham’s actual condition for, Hashem is the Creator, The Master, The Ruler over the world who knows and is aware of everything. And so we learn and gain insight from this first posuk as to the Mitzvah of Bikur Cholim; showing, caring, giving strength and encouragement to the ill by visiting and caring about them.
Friday, Shabbos, Motsei Shabbos War News: More Rockets Hit Askelon, Sderot, West Negev, IDF Blasts Rocket on Ground, 4 Terrorists Nabbed, Jew Stabbed by Arabs in Jerusalem, 2 Wounded by Stoning Near Peduel
Beit Shemesh Municipal Elections: Compelling Reasons to Vote Shalom Lerner
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Commentary;
On Wednesday, I received an email from neighbors Yissachar and Riki Fried, easily the paradigm, most compelling piece I’ve seen regarding the upcoming Beit Shemesh Municipal Elections on 11 November.
And so, I am sharing it with list subscribers, be they living in Beit Shemesh, throughout Israel, new olim or those planning Aliyah. It speaks volumes about the candidate and about the kind of Beit Shemesh that we all hope for. MB
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(Or, Why Every RBSA Anglo Chareidi Should Vote for Shalom Lerner)