Some 2,000 Israelis of all backgrounds ,religious, secular, and Hareidi , held prayers
overnight Wednesday at Kever Yosef in Shechem. The
special visit was arranged with the IDF, and soldiers accompanying the
group participated in prayers as well.
Leading the group was Diaspora Affairs Minister Yuli Edelstein,
Rabbi Elyakim Levanon (rav of the Samaria region), Samaria Council
director Gershon Mesika, and chairman of the Samaria Residents Council
Benny Katsover.
Accompanying the
group were some 50 reporters, both Israeli and foreign, mostly from
France. The reporters heard a detailed presentation about the Tomb and
about the return of Jews to Samaria by Katsover, one of the pioneers of
Jewish settlement in the region.
Among the guests were members of the Livnat family of Elon Moreh. Last
year, Ben Yosef Livnat was killed near the Tomb.