Yes, a secret tunnel led to a brawl between Jewish worshippers and the police—and that’s about all we know so far. According to KIRO 7, authorities and a group described as “Hasidic Jewish worshippers” came to a clash after police attempted to shutdown a tunnel going into the side of a Brooklyn synagogue. Apparently, the historic church in Crown Heights—known as the Chabad-Lubavitch world headquarters—was the subject of an emergency structural inspection after the tunnel was discovered. The brawl ensued when authorities were attacked by worshippers as they attempted to seal off the entrance to the tunnel.
A spokesperson for the Chabad reportedly told the Associated Press that a “group of extremist students” built the tunnel after breaking into a vacant building behind the headquarters. The underground passage apparently connected nearby offices and classrooms to the synagogue and videos began circulating of stained mattresses being pulled from the tunnels.
Check out the thread below for more coverage of the bizarre situation.
UPDATE: stained mattresses are being pulled from the underground tunnels that were found under the synagogues.
WHAT were the Jews doing in those tunnels?? pic.twitter.com/YbkRt9WqW3
— Lauren Witzke (@LaurenWitzkeDE) January 9, 2024