Jews held prayers for the re-election of “lover of Israel,” President Donald Trump, at the Tomb of the Patriarchs in the city of Hebron, attended by local political leaders.
Shlomo Ne’eman, head of the Gush Etzion Regional Council, called Trump a “lover of Israel.”
“During his first term, we obtained unprecedented approvals from the U.S. administration led by Trump, after painful building freezes by his predecessor [Barack Obama].
“Trump is a president who cares about the State of Israel and it is important for us that he continues for another term,” he added.
The head of Republicans in Israel, Marc Zell, pointed to the significance of the Jewish holy site, which is the burial site of the biblical patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and matriarchs Sarah, Rebecca and Leah. (Rachel is buried at a separate holy site.)
“Today’s service was very moving for me. To be in the presence of our founding fathers and our founding mothers who are buried in the [tomb] in Hebron was very special and to thank Donald Trump for bringing so many blessings to Israel,” Zell told Breitbart News.
“The biggest blessing of all was that in the spirit of Abraham our father, he’s brought the peoples of the Middle East together for the first time in a meaningful, long-lasting warm peace,” Zell added, referring to the recently signed Abraham Accords between Israel, the UAE and Bahrain.
“That’s something that only Donald Trump could have pulled off and I think that the only way it’s going to continue to grow and prosper between Arabs and Jews in our troubled region is if Donald Trump remains president of the United States after tomorrow.”
“We are just delighted to give thanks to the lord Almighty and to Donald Trump for everything he’s done for all the peoples of the Middle East. It’s the dream of a lifetime,” Zell added.
Yishai Fleisher, international spokesperson for the Jewish community in Hebron, said the tomb was “the perfect place to give honor to Trump.”
Zell noted that the timing of Tuesday’s election coincides with the time of the year that Jews traditionally learn the Biblical chapters that deal with the foundation of the Jewish people through the line of Isaac, his binding and the subsequent purchase by Abraham of the tomb, known in Hebrew as me’arat hamachpela.
“Hebron is the first capital of the Jewish people and the burial place of our founding fathers and mothers,” Zell said.
“What better place is there to kind of congregate and be thankful for all the wonderful things that Trump has done for us the past four years?” he added.
The Head of the Har Hebron Local Council, Yochai Damri, said Israelis owe “a debt of gratitude” to Trump.
“This week the elections in the US will take place and will to a large extent impact the future of the State of Israel. We owe President Trump a debt of gratitude for his support of the State of Israel, the Land of Israel, and the settlements over the past four years,” Damri said.
“The polls are very close, and we are meeting at the Cave of the Patriarchs to pray for his success. During his term as President, the State of Israel and the settlements in particular have received unprecedented support,” he added.
Both Jews and Muslims revere the Tomb of the Patriarchs as the burial place of the patriarchs, which has been the site of multiple attacks by terrorists. Palestinian officials in September claimed that the tomb is exclusively an Islamic heritage site with no connection to non-Muslims. The site is actually considered the second holiest in Judaism after the Temple Mount.
Zell warned that a Biden win would mean that the U.S. would reinstate funding for UNESCO, which the Trump administration withdrew from after it listed the Tomb of the Patriarchs as an “endangered World Heritage site” under the “State of Palestine” in July 2017.
Zell, whose group has organized several vehicle convoys and motorcades around Israel in support of Trump, said his efforts was a way of letting the “voters back in the [United] States and around the world know that what Donald Trump and Mike Pence have done for Jewish people, Israel and the world, frankly, is just amazing and we love it.”
He listed U.S. support of Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank and the Golan Heights, the relocated of the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem and recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, the decision to defund the Palestinians’ so-called pay for slay program, withdrawing from the Iran nuclear agreement, and brokering normalization deals between Israel and three Arab states.
“It’s like a golden goose that never stops laying golden eggs,” Zell said.
Other leaders participating in Monday’s event included the head of the Binyamin Council, Israel Gantz, head of the Gush Etzion Council, Shlomo Na’aman, head of the Kiryat Arba Council, Eliahu Libman, and the head of the Jewish Settlement in Hebron, Rabbi Hillel Horwitz.
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