The search continues for missing Lakewood yeshiva bochur 23-year-old Aaron Sofer, who went missing on erev Shabbos in the Jerusalem Forest. He was hiking when a friend when he disappeared.
Persons involved in the ongoing search effort explain there are fears for his life at this stage of the operation. Ichud Hatzalah’s Aaron Getz explained “beginning with the start of Shabbos the search has been ongoing with police cooperation”.
Getz explains the rabbonim instructed Ichud Hatzalah and Zaka volunteers to continue the search during Shabbos.
Vehicles with loudspeakers traveled in frum areas during Shabbos to rule out that Sofer was not being hosted in someone’s home.
“There is definitely a fear for his life,” clarified the source. “Therefore, we ask for the help of the public.”
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem / Photo: Ichud Hatzalah Spokesman)
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8 Responses
I just returned from searching the forest for Ahron. What a kiddush Hashem to see so many bochurim (many unfit) climbing the mountains in perfectly coordinated groups looking for any clues of ahron. The rangers at the head of every group where very surprised at the turnout of bochurim that came to assist in the search. I never saw such respect and coordination between the police and drum people. The head of the police at the (the one with the glasses on his head in the pix) scene himself told me how moved he was by all the tehilim that the people kept on stopping to say during the search. It was no surprise when the police commanders themselves asked to put on tefillin during the search. At 5:30 they said at least 600 volunteers already were searching and at least 200 more came after that. At dusk the police had to beg all the volunteers to go home and only the professionals can continue. There where helicopters, dogs, horses and rangers waiting to take over when everybody left. They said the volunteers are welcome to come tomorrow morning to continue searching. It’s quite interesting that only the frum news is reporting this story. After everyone gathered in the parking lot tired from the search people where there giving out drinks and rugellach while everyone was cleaning up the area so as not to leave over a mess. MI KEAMCHA YISROEL.Q
A notice in our shul reads: Reb Binyomin Elyashiv made a Goral Hagra and accordingly the Bochur is still alive and in an arab village… please daven for Ahron Ben Chuldah
Any updates yet?
Any chance that somebody has a better picture of the bachur, so we can have a good idea how we can identify him? Also what are his friends and parents saying?
dlkanoi, You do realize that the same or a similar claim was made with regard to the three bachurim who were kidnapped about a week after they had been killed? You can’t be mechazeik people with sheker. RAMBAM wrote that Pesi Yaamin Lechol Davar refers even to believable stories that are not from reliable sources. Keep the pashkevilim in your shul to yourself.
Tex.
With all due respect, but the story regarding the 3 boys that r’ Binyomin Elyashiv shlita doing the goral hagra is indeed true, you can listen to the whole conversation recorded on kikar hashabat.com
He NEVER once said that they were definetly alive, people took it out of context , as you can hear for yourself.
Regarding this case, we dont yet have a recoring of the conversation in with he were to explain any sort of goral, so to me it is for now just a rumor….
Let us just daven that he be found , alive and well, very soon.
Tex, I can understand your skepticism. You are right that one should definitely not accept everything he hears as fact. But to go to the opposite extreme and assume for certain that anything you don’t understand is false, is irrational, and not what the Rambam meant. I happen to have gone in to R Binyomin Elyashiv this Motzai shabbos, and the missing Bochur came up in conversation. He then proceeded to tell me that when the 3 bochurim were missing someone came to him and begged him to do the goral Hagrah, as it may help. He told me that he did it, and that it was correct. And given that, it is not such a stretch to believe that someone come to him again, or he decided to do it himself.