Dr. Dan Sagir: Attack on Humanistic Judaism
Dr. Dan Sagir describes how about 80 volunteers, including rabbis and a Democratic candidate for Congress, were arrested during an olive harvest in the village of Nahalin, after an IDF and police force declared the area a closed military zone. The volunteers were released on bail with a restraining order from the West Bank.
Dr. Dan Sagir, an Israeli security researcher, describes volunteering as a protective presence during an olive harvest in the village of Nahalin near Beitar Illit, under the auspices of the organization "Rabbis for Human Rights." According to him, about a week after the publication of a halachic ruling by Rabbi Dov Lior permitting Jews to steal olives from Arab villagers, a joint force of the IDF and Israel Police arrived, arresting about 80 volunteers, including rabbis from a progressive background and a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Congress, Brad Lander. The volunteers were taken to the Etzion police station, questioned on suspicion of "disturbing the peace," and released on bail with a 30-day restraining order from the West Bank. Sagir claims the arrest was political, and that the officers themselves were not at ease with it. He notes that the arrest caused a "public relations disaster" in the U.S.