A rare and emotional conversation between HaRav Moshe Hillel Hirsch and a recently arrested ben yeshiva is sending shockwaves through the Olam Hatorah, as the Rosh Yeshiva delivered a sobering assessment of the ongoing draft crisis facing bnei yeshiva.

The meeting took place at HaRav Hirsch’s home in Bnei Brak, where Reuven Lamenatzeach, a talmid of Yeshivas Kibbutz Givat Ze’ev who was recently arrested by an undercover police officer on Highway 1, arrived together with his Rosh Yeshiva to recount the details of his arrest and detention.

HaRav Hirsch listened attentively as the young man described his experiences in custody. The Rosh Yeshiva carefully reviewed the draft order the bochur received upon his release, which instructed him to report immediately to the military induction center, and offered words of encouragement and bracha.

During the conversation, HaRav Hirsch asked where the arrest had taken place. Upon hearing that the bochur had been detained despite allegedly committing no offense, he asked whether the friend who had been traveling with him had also been arrested.

The bochur replied that his friend had been released.

“Is he Ashkenazi?” HaRav Hirsch asked.

“No,” the bochur responded, “but he looks Ashkenazi.”

“That’s what I thought,” HaRav Hirsch replied.

The conversation then turned to concerns about discrimination in enforcement. HaRav Hirsch asked whether the officer involved in the arrest was Sephardic, remarking: “Tell him, what are you doing?”

Later, the Rosh Yeshiva accompanying the bochur asked a question weighing heavily on the minds of many in the Torah world: “When will this end?”

HaRav Hirsch closed his eyes and responded with a stark warning.

“The problem is that it hasn’t started yet. We’re still before the beginning.”

The remark stunned those present and underscored his concern regarding what may lie ahead for bnei yeshiva.

At the same time, HaRav Hirsch emphasized that efforts are being made to alleviate some of the hardships being experienced by those arrested.

“There are details,” he said. “The suffering at the beginning — that can be fixed.”

The bochur then told the Rosh Yeshiva that he had been ordered to report for induction the very next morning.

“Tomorrow I’m supposed to enlist,” he said.

HaRav Hirsch responded with words of encouragement.

“We are trying to do something. We are working in various ways, and Hashem should help us succeed. And Hashem should give you the strength to withstand the test.”

Before departing, the bochur requested a personal bracha. HaRav Hirsch warmly blessed him:

“Hashem should help that you be completely released.”

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)