Brooklyn, NY – Thousands of Satmar chasidim gathered last night to commemorate the 69th anniversary of the Satmar Rebbe’s liberation from Bergen Belsen in 1944.
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The Satmar Rebbe, R’ Yoel Teitelbaum, zt’l, was rescued from the German concentration camp on the famed Kastner Train, in a deal brokered between Adolf Eichmann and Rudolph Kastner, which saved many Hungarian Jews from certain death in exchange for money, gold and diamonds. In addition to carrying 273 children to safety, the Kastner train, which left Budapest in June of 1944, made an unexpected stop in Bergen Belsen in July before finally arriving in Switzerland later that year.
Both factions of the Satmar community commemorated the event, which is marked annually with festivities, on a grand scale. R’ Aron Teitelbaum’s followers celebrated the occasion at the New York State Armory in Crown Heights while the chasidim of R’ Zalman Leib Teitelbaum observed the day with a gala of their own at the New York State Armory in Williamsburg.
Both Satmar Rebbes use the event as an annual opportunity to address their followers. R’ Aron spoke about both the dangers of smart phones, urging his chasidim to refrain from using the devices, asked his followers to dedicate more time to Torah study and spoke about the perils of drafting Chareidim into the Israeli army.
In his address, R’ Zalman spoke about the necessity for internet filters even on Jewish news outlets, not taking money from the Israeli government and the dearth of affordable housing, mentioning the new Satmar community being planned in Bloomingburg, New York.
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Photos an video below from Crown Heights Armory:
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Photos an video below from Williamsburg Armory:
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Soon all the Satmar haters will emerge with the same old baloney that the Rebbe was rescued by the Zionists here is the truth :
In late 1941, Rabbi Michuel Weissmandel personally negotiated with the Nazis to halt the deportation of the Slovakian Jews, this agreement held on for close to 4 years, Satmar Rebbe and the orthodox rescue mission in Budapest where collecting the ransom money from Jews all over the world. Meanwhile the Zionist Jewish Agency were also negotiating with the Nazis, but their top priority was not saving Jewish lives, but rather their Zionist agenda, their believe was the more blood it spills in Europe the more chance the International community will grant them there land. In mid 1944 the Jewish Agency blatantly sabotaged a deal that was reached with the Nazis, to stop deportation of all Hungarian Jews, and offered to instead just let out one transport of elite Zionist leaders.
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Satmar Rebbe’s people knew about this transport only because he was involved in the negotiations for years. Before he got on that transport from the Cluj Ghetto his people paid a big chunk of the ransom the Nazi’s demanded, when the transport got to Budapest, the Nazis demanded more money, and it was directed to go straight to Auschwitz for extermination, Satmar Rebbe’s people then produced a new sum of ransom money, and the transport was redirected to Bergen Belzen, while in Bergen Belzen they paid again a big ransom, till the transport crossed over to Switzerland.
This is all well documented by secular Zionist and Rabbi Weissmandel in his book Min Hameitzar
its easy to be a critic of Israel from Williamsburg but why not criticize something closer to the heart and home.
Try instead to make peace between the two brothers of Satmar and then between the various groupies in the frum world. After you are successful with that, then we welcome your opinion on how to make some sort of peace here in Israel
Why is it noted, not once, but in several places below the photos, that the Satmars are anti-Zionist? What does their political position have to due with the historic rescue of Rabbi Joel Teitlebaum (z’l)?
Wow, just imagine if there would be one satmar?
The Rebbe was rescued on a train organized by Kastner who worked for the Sochnuth and the deal was struck between the Jewish Agency and a deputy of Eichmann for whom Kastner later testified. Without the Zionists and those rich chasidim who had money to pay the Rebbe would not have been rescued . The name of the SS officer was Kurt Becher. Kastner later was shot and killed for his testimony in behalf of the SS officer. I have the min hameizer in Ivrit and the book has been translated into English and anyone can verify. Maven learn how to read. Rabbi Weissmandl and Gisi Fleischmann appealed for help but had nothing to do with the Satmar deal. Better all of you watch the Auschwitz album , multimedia and it was big money needed to excape the gas chamber. I believe the Jewish Agency is not Satmar
The negotiation of Rabbi Weissmandel with the Nazis is a figment of your imagination. Rabbi Weissmandel was in Slovakia and the negotiations took place in Budapest
There is too much hate in the frum/ chassidic/ yeshivish world. I personally know too much about it all
I belong to a group that used to be diametrically opposed to Satmer. Even though my family comes from satmer.
I know of what I speak.
But when I look at these beautiful pictures. At the beautiful Eidah. At the beautiful kinderlach that grew up in the USA post holocaust.
I am nothing short of awe and admiration.
KA”H.
I see huge events at both satmer rebbes. I see huge kinus shluchim at Chabad. I see huge agudas yisroel conventions. And huge daf yomi siyumim.
This is simply unprecedented I’m Jewish history.
Enough hate. Enough sinaah. Our Torah is big enough to encompass all streams of authentic Judaism.
Kol hakavod.
I wish all my Satmar friends & colleagues a Gut Yom Tov.
Maven it sounds as if you have an agenda.
To quote ” can’t we all just get along” or is the politics of hatred so ingrained in Judaism that we can’t move on?
The Rebbe as was Kastner were both saved by HaShem! the vehicle was through Kastner. perhaps having the Rebbe on board secured the escape and without him Kastner and Company would have been slaughtered in Auschwitz. who knows? nobody knows! for whatever reasons it had to happen the way it did with a Zionist and and Anti-zionist coming out of the Lions den together. whose Zchus it was in is not important.
Just add insult to injury. It is well documented that when rijeo kastners legal team asked RYT to come to Israel to testify on his behalf. RYT refused saying that Hashem saved him not Kastner.
He did not have the slightest hakoros hatov.
Too bad for all of us, between 1933 and 1939, 99% of all rabbonim, litvush and chassidshe, were busy condemning America for not being frum enough and being the graveyard of Judaism, instead of warning about what was to come. They all got it wrong. Only the Zionist Yidden warned of the impending dangers and then actively resisted and fought the nazis. Then they set up haEretz for the remnants to gather, including the anti-Zionist Jews who benefit from its protection. HaShem has a hand in Earthly realities, such as the creation of Israel, despite the obscure rejections of those who ignored the realities of the oncoming disaster yet benefit from Yiddishkeit’s rebirth in Israel & America. Brooklyn is in America, no?