Photo courtesy of Times of Israel.

A lot can change in record time, Thursday April 29^th signaled the start of Lag B Omer, a Jewish religious celebration with lighting of bonfires. On Mt. Meron were gathered about 100,000 Jews celebrating when tragedy struck in the form of a stampede leaving 45 dead including children, in a nearby village the least expected unfolded, Arab residents in nearby villages offered food and drink to thousands of Jews leaving the site and even donated blood.

Exactly a week later tension in the Old City at the Temple mount which hosts Al Aqsa mosque clashes between Israeli police erupt after Palestinian throw rocks and bottles at police after Friday Ramadhan prayers according to Times of Israel. It is perplexing that things can escalate so quickly that as of today 12^th May 2021, there have been over 1050 rockets have been fired into Israel by Hamas from the Gaza Strip and a host of other clashes as listed here:

1. Clashes at the Temple mount after Ramadhan prayers leave 17 police officers hurt and according to Palestinian red crescent at least 205 Palestinians wounded (TOI, 2021).
2. Jewish man attacked by lynch hungry mob outside the old city and is saved by a policeman who shoots in the air.
3. 11^th May – two women killed in Ashkelon (Rosenberg, 2021).
4. 11^th may – Rioting in Lod, mayor declares state of emergency as Arabs start to attack Jews in their homes.
5. 11^th May – many cars belonging to Jewish people burnt down.
6. 11^th May - Acre – popular Jewish restaurant, Uri Buri burnt down by rioters and 84-year-old man hurt (Harkov, 2021).
7. 11^th May – three Synagogues burnt and business in Lod City attacked and ransaked.
8. 12^th May – One person killed and two injured, one critically   

In Jaffa there were protests from Arabs who clashed with police (Harkov, 2021).

It’s so unfortunate that in this day when as humanity we should be uniting to conquer the pandemic that we have this kind of division, hatred and destruction. In the words of Rabbi Eliezer Yehuda, dean of the Mir Yeshiva in Jerusalem, “It is a time pf trouble for Jacob”, I therefore request you to join in prayer that the peace of God would once more be restored in the land of Israel and that God’s love would dwell richly in all. Psalms 121: 4.

Shalom.