So I woke up for vasikkin...somehow. I walked from my house near Tachana Merkazit to my shvers shul on Sorotzkin - a bunch of the married kids come in for ST, and we all daven vasikin so as to be yotzei all the mitzvas hayom before we need to deal with bringing the kids to hakafos, and to be able to eat the seuda at a normal time ect...
At some point during hakafos someone mentioned that there had been an Azaka (air raid siren), which we thought was weird as we hadn't heard it, and usually the rockets to JLM come on the second or third day of shooting... We continued on, and in middle of Chosson Torah we all heard an Azaka... We quickly decided that the Shul was our current "Hachi Mugan SheYesh" - most protected available place and so we stayed in place, finished off the kriya quickly, Geshem, Musaf...heard atleast 4 more azakot along the way plus a car fom MDA announcing something...(either stay off the streets or come donat blood...I'm not sure at this point) we all scattered home as quickly as possible... I first asked the Rav if there was any reason to davka take my 4 year old hakafa hopping, and was told: No, stay home.
I planned my route home so I would be close to open buildings the whole time... I first helped my brother in law carry his stroller up the steps to Petach Tikva, instead of the easier, but much longer ramp, so he would get under cover faster.
While walking along Petach Tikva, I got my first idea of the severity of the situation. One of the long time residents had at least some news. I don't know if she's "traditional" so would check her phone anyway on shabbos, or if a relative of hers got called up, so she knew that way. Her summary was "Hadarom Al Galgalim" "Kol Hadarom Aish", with the first details of invasion, 14 conquered yishuvim,. hundreds dead...
By kikar Harimonim I saw my first person in madim. On Harikma, I saw someone drive up bringing a soldiers backpack to him in Adi, and him changing to report.
I stopped at the chassidishe shul a couple of buildings away from my house to ask them when they would be having Kol Haneorim... but they were in middle of krias shema, so i went home.
At home, I got a report of what had gone down on the homefront while I was away. They had heard all the azakot, and had gone into our hallway (hachi mugan sheyesh) Our building doesnt have a miklat or maamad, and honestly I havent the foggiest clue where the nearest one is. The neighbors came in for the all of them (after the first one where they ran to nearby buildings looking for a miklat). Shortly after I came home there was another azaka, so we went to the hallway andI saw how my wife just told my kids "now we're playing in the hallway"...
My wife is an EMT, so i heard what had been reported on their channels. They had first asked for all ambulance drivers to come and take ambulances southwards, and had later upgraded that to all available EMTS to come and get on ambulances to go south... So we knew the rumors must have some truth...
I made kidush and started my seuda at about 11:30. Just after washing I noticed a single soldier standing next to the enterance to tachana merkazi wearing "chareidi" style tzitis (wool with a black stripe) so I decided to go see if he needed anything... I bring a bottle of water bec its a hot day
I get there and he's a chabad boy from the US (I Think NY) shlomo zalman aharon ben rivka? somthing?... in tzanchanim. He says that he's just a couple of weeks from the end of training but his unit is essentialy combat ready...
I see that there a scores of dati soldiers waiting for busses, more coming busses leaving... I make my rounds offering from my bottle of water, come back with two large bottles, rinse repeat... Some of the boys have come straight from the middle of shacharis... At some point guys who brought some sort of food start to put it on the floor in the middle of the scrum of guys for anyone who needs. Other neighbors started to bring food, a neighbor brings his table from his sukka... other neighbors bring chlolent, kugels, challa, dips, grape juice, plates... Some chassidishe bachur, starts to do what chasidim do the best - make a matzav, hand out food,....
At some point I decide to go back to the shul to see when Kol hanearim might be. It's a realy chasidishe place (afiliated with ShomreiEmunim/TA/TAY style kanaus. I get there and while I'm asking when Kol hanearim might be, mention to the rebbe that there are tons of frum soldiers that need krias hatorah...
I'm still coming back and forth with water... at some point my 4 and 2.5 year old start "helping to carry" the water...
They bring a ST from the shul, start krias hatorah - Thats where my kids heard Vzos habracha... The ST was there for close to 4 hours... with one of teh chasidim skipping all his hakafos to take care of it all...
At some point the new hotel at Yirmiyahu 33 sends over a wagon full of food - just as a massive group of guys who had been spending ST at Yeshivat Har Etzion in the gush arrive for their rides to base. They havent had much to eat yet and one says "you guys saved us. I meet someone from Tororto who says that he's only been in training for two months... but everyone in the army got called up... They noticed that the security of the yishuv was on high alert, asked a shayla and one bachur was told to check his phone. Once they got the info from his phone the psak was everyone should carry their phone...
They davened Mincha. dancing. Ata vechartanu... Zachreini Na...
At 3:30-4ish we went to the shul got the last hakafa kol hanearim, berashis...
Went back to see if any more soldiers needed anything, all the dati soldiers were gone and there were just a few chiloni ones
Met one of My rebbeim from the states....
Took my kids home to get ready for bed... went to mincha at the shul, for some reason they rushed to wash for their seuda before shkiya???
Came home. Shaloshudis.
Took out my phone to hear the news on the way to maariv...and thets when the shocking terible news became really real.
Rabbosai, I have to tell you, what ever you are getting on the US news isnt even the start of it.
They went house to house on over 14! yishuvim, kibutzim searching for and killing yidden.
On one yishuv they took a young boy and used him as a trojan horse to knock on all his neighbors doors and ask to be let it... when they opened....
They killed anashim nashim vtaf, zekainim vnearim.
The current number is over 700 dead
Israel admits at this moment to over 100 people being kidnapped! Hamas claims over 130...
They captured and raped young girls. 8 year olds!!
They captured many senior citizens.
Soldiers, policemen, firefighters...
The comparison is not the Yom Kippur war, the comparison is Poland september 1939!
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