A disturbing incident in Bnei Brak has sparked condemnation after the elderly Strikover Rebbe was reportedly assaulted by a group of troublemakers while leaving a wedding this week.

The incident occurred at approximately 11:15 p.m. Tuesday night as the Rebbe was making his way out of a wedding celebrating the marriage of a son of the Leipniker Rebbe, held at the Heichalei HaPaar wedding hall in Bnei Brak.

According to eyewitness accounts, a group of individuals confronted the Strikover Rebbe as he attempted to leave the simcha. The confrontation escalated into physical violence, and during the disturbance, the Rebbe’s hat was knocked from his head.

The incident generated particular outrage because of the Rebbe’s advanced age and his standing as one of the senior admorim of the generation.

Reports of the confrontation spread quickly through Bnei Brak and the wider chareidi community, prompting strong expressions of condemnation over the treatment of an elderly Torah leader.

In the aftermath of the incident, Rav Dov Landau, Rosh Yeshivas Slabodka, paid a personal visit to the Strikover Rebbe to offer chizuk and express his concern.

The precise circumstances surrounding the confrontation have not been fully established, and published accounts differ on certain details, including the identity of those involved and the sequence of events.

However, multiple reports agree that the Rebbe was confronted during the wedding celebration and that the encounter involved physical aggression.

The incident came just days after another confrontation involving a prominent rebbe.

On Sunday evening, the Karlin-Stoliner Rebbe was targeted by extremists as he departed a family wedding in Beit Shemesh. According to reports, individuals shouted insults and hurled stones and other objects at his vehicle.

The Stoliner Rebbe was not injured in that incident, but the attack drew condemnation from across the chareidi community.

The two incidents, occurring within days of each other, have intensified concern over violence and harassment directed at rabbonim and admorim.

In the wake of the Strikover incident, chareidi commentators emphasized that disagreements, however strongly held, cannot justify physical attacks or the public humiliation of Torah leaders.

One published condemnation stated, “Violence is not the way of Torah and should not be directed against anyone, particularly rabbonim and Torah scholars.”

The incident has also renewed discussion about the conduct of fringe elements whose actions have repeatedly generated concern within the chareidi community.

As of now, no confirmed information had emerged regarding arrests or criminal charges specifically connected to the incident involving the Strikover Rebbe.

{Matzav.com}