A video has come to light of two Lev Tahor members praising the state of Israel, a stark departure from their usual vehement anti-Israel and anti-Zionist rhetoric and quite risky since they currently are engaging in efforts to reach Israel’s archenemy Iran.
Uriel Goldman, who is now in the Kurdistan area along with two other cult members, is seen in the video praising Israel for its behavior during its recent war with Gaza and in previous operations, when the Israeli army does everything it can to avoid harming civilians.
The Zoom video was recorded shortly after Operation Guardian of the Walls, which took place in May.
Goldman’s praise of Israel is not only completely uncharacteristic of normal Lev Tahor rhetoric but it is especially ironic considering the fact that their bid to enter Iran is based on the claim that the cult is “persecuted by the Zionist authorities in Israel.”
Another one of the cult’s leaders, Shmiel Weingarten, is seen in the video sitting next to Goldman. Weingarten was arrested in Guatemala on the first day of Pesach in a joint US and Guatemalan raid on charges of suspected involvement in the abuse and kidnapping of children.
“I just learned a big lesson from what’s going on in Gaza – all this stuff,” Goldman says in the video. “You know what? The people who are attacking the humanitarian acts that Israel do is like a joke. I just thought of it in the last few days. The people are saying: ‘How come you’re attacking children? There are casualties with children, and they’re attacking so many…'”
“And it’s nonsense because you know how they [Israel] so care about things, much more than Americans. But there are people that are always going to have – ‘we found a new thing about Israel, Israel – this, that.’ And it’s just people who hate Israel and use every single thing…like to attack.”
“And we thought sometimes – people about our [Lev Tahor] community is the same. That always they find some new things and new findings. ‘I heard someone said this, said that.” And it’s like…what’s going on?”
“So you understand what I’m saying? I know that Israel tried to do the best they can if and when it’s a war. But we are laughing when they say: ‘Oh, what the Palestinians -nebach…they’re attacking them. It’s a joke. Between me and you – everybody knows it’s a joke.”
Shana Aaronson, the Executive Director at Magen for Jewish Communities, which assists families who have relatives in the cult, responded to the video by stating: “This video is another example of the lies of the cult leaders, who show how much of their behavior is based on an attempt to control cult members, and is not based on religion as they claim.”
“They lie about kashrus issues in order to keep certain food from cult members, they are mechallel Shabbos in order to ensure the continued existence of the cult, and they are lying about the ultimate destination of their journey and are not informing cult members that they intend to enter Iran. The state of Israel must end this saga and arrange for the international arrest of some of the cult leaders and bring the children back to Israel.”
“We are also calling on the public to pressure the authorities and do everything they can in order to bring the children to safety.”
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