Wild riot breaks out at New York synagogue over secret TUNNEL: Orthodox Jews are dragged away in handcuffs after trying to stop construction crews from filling their illegal passageway
Wild scenes broke out at a Brooklyn synagogue on Monday after construction workers arrived to fill a tunnel illegally dug into the earth — and young Orthodox Jewish men climbed onto the path to block its closure.
Ten people were arrested, local media reported, as New York police were called in to quell the chaos.
The rabbi who heads the synagogue, Yosef Braun, said the young men's actions were “heinous” and a disgrace to the holy site.
The dispute is believed to stem from a decades-long schism within the Chabad – one of the largest groups of Hasidic Jews in the world – with the Chabad-Lubavitch movement turning against the synagogue's leadership.
The two sides disagree over who is the legal owner of the century-old house on the property that serves as the world headquarters of the Chabad-Lubavitch.
The synagogue's wooden walls are depicted being torn apart, in scenes the rabbi said were 'stunning'
The NYPD was called in to try to get the young men out of the tunnels and have the passage filled with cement
Members of the synagogue on Monday tore away interior wooden panels to reveal the entrance to the tunnel and entered to prevent the tunnels from being filled.
There were wild scenes at the Crown Heights building Monday afternoon
Members of Chabad-Lubavitch have been digging tunnels under the synagogue at 770 Eastern Parkway, in Brooklyn's Crown Heights neighborhood, for months.
The purpose of the tunnel is unclear: the website Forward.com reported that it was intended to reach an abandoned women's mikvah or ritual baths. According to the website, the tunnel was dug to 'expand' the synagogue, although it was unclear how that would happen.
The tunnels were discovered in December and synagogue leaders called in structural engineers to assess the damage.
On Monday, cement mixers arrived to fill the tunnels, and the young Orthodox men reacted with anger. Many of them tore away the wooden walls that hid the entrance to the secret tunnels, and ran against them to prevent them from being filled.
A video shared on social media showed dozens of NYPD officers visiting the site and attempting to push the angry young men back from the tunnel entrance.
Some men try to storm back through the tunnels, while a large crowd laughs at the police.
Outside the synagogue, the NYPD stops the men.
It depicts young men being arrested, handcuffed and led away by the NYPD
Crowds of Hasidic men lined up outside the building Monday evening
The NYPD attempted to clear the building so construction crews could get to work
A police cruiser is seen outside the building, at 770 Eastern Parkway
An NYPD officer is seen talking to a community member Monday evening
One man challenges the NYPD officer, who replies, “We don't do that in America.”
Hasidic news site COL Live reported that many of the young men were from Israel.
After several hours, NYPD officers were seen leading handcuffed men out of the tunnels.
An NYPD spokesperson told DailyMail.com: 'On Monday, January 8, 2024, at approximately 3:30 p.m., police responded to 911 calls of a disorderly group outside 770 Eastern Parkway, within the confines of the 71 Precinct.
“Upon arrival, officers were advised that a group of individuals had unlawfully entered 770 Eastern Parkway by damaging a wall.
'It is currently known that a number of people have been arrested. Charges are pending.
“There were no injuries as a result of this incident.”
A man is seen emerging from the tunnels beneath the synagogue
Braun, the synagogue's rabbi, condemned the young men.
He said they arrived at the site “ready to destroy and disfigure the Sacred Walls,” and urged other members of his community to “address them in every possible way and in strong terms.”
Braun said he was shocked that they destroyed the “shul,” or synagogue.
He said it is “mind-boggling to demolish and destroy a Shul, regardless of the dangerous aspect, let alone the religious aspect.”
Braun said the young men's actions were “painful” for his community.
“They need to be put in their place, in so many senses of the word,” he concluded.