Worshippers arriving for evening prayers near the tomb of Rabbi Yitzhak Luria, better known as the Arizal or Ari Hakadosh, were shocked Sunday night to discover that the tomb had been desecrated, apparently by members of an anti-Zionist haredi group.
Rabbi Luria, a 16th century rabbi revered as one of the most influential figures within Kaballah, is buried in the city of Tzfat in northern Israel.
On Sunday the Arizal’s tomb was desecrated with anti-Zionist graffiti condemning the IDF, with the words “army = extermination” scrawled on a wall of the tomb.
The message echoes slogans by opponents of IDF within the haredi community, including fringe elements which seek to delegitimize religious soldiers.
“How dare they – these people who call themselves haredi zealots opposed to army service – desecrate the grave of this holy one,” one of the worshippers present at the grave told Kikar Hashabbat. “How did their hands not quiver when they did this perverted, evil act?”
