Chabad Centers Near IDF Bases Provide Lifelines for Soldiers Headed to War
by Yaakov Ort – chabad.org
More than 360,000 IDF reservists have reported to duty in what was the fastest and largest call-up in Israel’s history. Many of these young men and women came straight from their synagogues, where they were celebrating Simchat Torah, or from the homes of family members or hotels where they were spending the Sukkot holiday. Some flew in from abroad. But few had the time to adequately pack supplies, never mind shop for specialty items they’d need on the frontlines.
All around Israel, Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries and a host of volunteers are working around the clock to source and deliver supplies to those on active duty. The focal points for their distribution are three Chabad centers near IDF bases that regularly serve troops with hot meals, Torah classes, and personal counseling and encouragement: in the south, Chabad of Eilat; in Judea, Chabad of Hebron; and in the north, Chabad of Metula.
Inspired by the teachings and example of the Rebbe—Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory—who infused optimism in the Israeli populace and the Israeli Defense Forces, proclaiming clearly that Israel would be victorious in the darkest hours—the Chabad emissaries provide both material and spiritual sustenance to the troops every day.
Rabbi Mendi and Chana Klein of Chabad of Eilat are in touch with the commanders in the eight military bases surrounding the coastal city at the southern tip of Israel. The bases in the area are primarily for training, and usually have tens of thousands of soldiers. Now, during war, nearly 100,000 soldiers are onsite.
“You can’t train soldiers near Gaza,” Rabbi Klein tells Chabad.org. “One mortar on such a huge group, would, G‑d forbid, be a disaster. Here in Eilat, we rarely ever get attacks, and so this is where the training and regrouping takes place. They even brought flights of reservists who were abroad for Sukkot directly to a base near Eilat.”
As the reservists began arriving en masse, Klein began receiving calls from commanders requesting his help to obtain basic items that the soldiers needed.
“Huge amount of requests are coming to us from reservists and from commanders. I just got off the phone with a commander who asked me for 200 packs of wipes and tissue paper, and a few other basic items that he urgently needs,” said Klein.
Rabbi Mendi and Chani spent the day organizing young volunteers who went to pick up, sort and deliver the much-needed items.
“Yesterday, we delivered sweat-resistant tzitzit, packages of food and sweets. They came suddenly in the middle of Simchat Torah, so they also need things like underwear and socks. My daughter is now driving a large delivery van full of these items that soldiers requested to a base an hour away.”
Aside from practical needs, the soldiers also look to Chabad for spiritual inspiration and care.“These are soldiers who are training to go into the most dangerous parts of Gaza. So we help them put on tefillin, give them words of encouragement and do what we can to uplift them.”
Hebron Rabbis On Duty in Every Way
On a normal day, Rabbi Danny Cohen, who has directed Chabad of Hebron with his wife, Batsheva, for two decades, would be serving hundreds of soldiers in his home and giving them encouragement as they patrol the streets. But today he’s in uniform on reserve duty, along with the three other rabbis of Chabad of Hebron.
“It is special, you know,” says Rabbi Cohen. “Year-round, our mission here is with the IDF soldiers and security forces, trying to take care of them physically and spiritually, and ensuring they have a meaningful service in Hebron. Now, wearing the same uniform and walking the same streets and doing exactly what they do, you know, it gives it a whole different perspective.”
Cohen proudly sent photos of himself, Rabbi Mordechai Hellinger, Rabbi Yoni Attiah and Rabbi Itzik Naimark—the entire Chabad of Hebron rabbinate in uniform—guarding the holy city.
The last time Cohen experienced this was in 2014 during “Operation Protective Edge.”
Even while in uniform, the rabbis continue to direct the Chabad House activities. “We are at the same time coordinating different efforts to assist Hebron soldiers. We’re getting requests from different units for equipment that’s missing, and we have a whole campaign for that. We also have young yeshivah students from abroad who came to help out for the year.”
These students have been collecting and delivering supplies to the reservist soldiers stationed around Hebron, as well as helping them don tefillin, and bringing words of encouragement and warmth from Jews around the world.
“You know, the headlines in Israel over the past year may have been very divisive,” says Cohen. “But suddenly, a spell came over the Jewish people, and we remembered to unite. In one moment, all this friction, all this tension, that whole focus, everything just disappeared. And we’re here together.”
“In my unit, there are guys from every walk of life in Israel, every background. The whole separation and friction; it’s a non-issue. Everybody is just focused on defending with a huge motivation to fight, hoping to get the right orders. And it’s heartwarming, it’s encouraging. And, you know, in this whole chaotic situation that we’re in, it’s like a little beacon of light.”
Asked what he wants Jews around the world to know, Cohen pointed to this week’s Torah portion.
This week, Jews all over the world start reading the Torah portion from Bereshit—from the beginning. Rashi famously opens his commentary with a question: Why does a book of laws start with a story and spend so much time on it? The answer, Rashi explains, is so that the Jewish people know to tell the nations of the world that G‑d created the entire world, and He gifted the Land of Israel to the Jews.
“If you look into that message,” says Cohen. “It’s really not about telling the world that it’s ours. It’s about, first of all, telling ourselves, giving ourselves the answer. We need to know confidently that this is our land that G‑d gave us.”
The Rabbi Who Has Troops Stationed on His Roof
On the opposite end of Israel, at the very northern tip, is a tiny town called Metula. Here, Rabbi Moshe and Bracha Leah Sasonkin have been directing Chabad of Metula’s activities since 1989, including through the Second Lebanon War in the summer of 2006.
When war was declared this weekend, Metula residents were advised to evacuate. Most residents who were able to leave did so, but the Sasonkins remained to assist the soldiers; ever since, Rabbi Sasonkin has had a role in the Metula War Room.
“If you look on the map, you will see that Metula is like a pencil tip, pointing into Lebanon,” explains Bracha Leah Sasonkin. “We’re surrounded on three sides. A few years ago, the IDF found tunnels here, dug from Lebanon. So there’s always a very high risk of Hezbollah terrorist infiltrations happening here, similar to what happened in the south.”
“Every 500 meters, there’s another group of soldiers in a jeep or hummer,” she says. “They’re patrolling everywhere to make sure Metula is safe.”
There are even soldiers stationed on the roof of the Sasonkin home.
“We are on the top of the hill, facing strategic targets,” says Sasonkin. “On Monday, we woke up to loud booms, as the soldiers were firing from our roof at Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.”
Since Sunday, the remaining residents of Metula have been instructed multiple times to take cover in their bomb shelters and bolt the doors, both due to crossfire and potential terrorist infiltrations. But even in the bomb shelter, the Sasonkins are busy worrying about the soldiers.
“Metula is a small town, and the soldiers become family to all the residents here, so we help in refilling coffee stations and ensuring they have snacks, good food and all their needs. We even have a WhatsApp group where soldiers will alert us if a coffee station is running low.”
The military commanders in Metula are very connected to the Sasonkins, and feel comfortable confiding in them and turning to them for help—even something like sending a soldier to do laundry in their home.
When local commanders alert them to ongoing missions, the Chabad family prepares a warm meal for the soldiers to fill up on afterwards.
“Last night, we learned that a unit would be heading on a difficult mission,” says Sasonkin. “So my daughters went to the large kitchen in nearby Kiryat Shemona, and cooked and packaged 70 fresh meals for them to eat upon return.”
The soldiers also turn to them for encouragement and spiritual connection. During the high tensions, many soldiers are eager to don tefillin, hear words of Torah or make positive commitments to bolster their faith.
For more information and insight on the Gaza War visit Chabad.org’s Israel at War home page, which includes 7 Things You Can Do for Israel Now and instructions on how to Donate to the Israel Emergency Relief Fund.
