World's 1st Rocket-Proof Torah Center Opens
Aaron Klein
HERZLIYA, Israel – The world's first rocket-proof yeshiva, or Torah seminary, was dedicated last week in Sderot, a rocket-battered town just outside the Gaza Strip that has become the main target of Palestinian projectile attacks against Jewish civilian population zones.
"The Arabs are trying to turn Sderot into a ghost town," said Rabbi David Fendel, founder of Sderot's yeshiva. "This new building, which stands almost literally in the shadow of Gaza, lets our enemies know that they have failed."
"For every Kassam that falls in Sderot," he vowed, "we feel obligated to build another classroom, another building, as the ultimate Zionistic response to the terrorism."
The new yeshiva building will serve as the main study hall for over 500 students, all of whom are enrolled in what is known as a Hesder program, which combines Torah learning with service in the Israeli army.
More than 100 students in the Sderot yeshiva served in various battle capacities during Israel's recent 22-day war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, yeshiva spokesman Josh Hasten told WND. The Sderot school boasts the largest Hesder program in Israel.
The roof of the yeshiva was made of 40 centimeters of poured cement – thick enough to withstand a direct rocket hit – while all windows are bullet- and shrapnel-proof and feature additional overhangs of thick cement. The building features a large study hall, classrooms, kitchen and lunch room.
Present for the yeshiva ceremony were dozens of prestigious rabbinical leaders from both Israel and the U.S.
The yeshiva's expansion comes at a time of increased tension along the Israel-Gaza border following Israel's military campaign, which was prompted by Hamas firing large volleys of rockets into Jewish towns such as Sderot.
Residents of the 25,000-strong city located about a mile from Gaza have been living under constant rocket attack ever since Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip in 2005. The Israeli government recently installed a "Red Color" alarm system to warn citizens of incoming rockets, only giving about a 15 second notice before a potentially deadly projectile slams into the city.