The 1929 riots were a bitter surprise to the developing Jewish settlement in the Land of Israel, and they changed forever the relationship with the Arabs and the assessment of the security situation. The Jewish community in Hebron suffered a blow from which it has not recovered to this day. During this period, the figure of our Master, Rabbi Kook (of blessed memory), emerged as a central leadership figure. The official leadership of the Yishuv was at that time at the Zionist Congress abroad, and the Rabbi was among the few who stood in the difficult campaign. The following description is based on the comprehensive book by Rabbi Moshe Zvi Neria, Likutey HaRe’iyah (vol. 25).
The bloody riots of the month of Av, 1929, broke out in Jerusalem on Friday (the 17th of Av). Upon exiting their prayers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the Arabs attacked the Jews they encountered on their way, resulting in deaths and injuries. From there, the storm moved on—carried by inciters—to the peaceful Hebron, whose Jewish residents had lived there for many years in quiet, within relatively good neighborly relations with the Arabs. The leaders of the Yishuv, members of the Zionist Executive and the National Council (Va'ad Leumi), were then abroad at the Zionist Congress in Zurich, and the situation was extremely grave. In the absence of all these leaders, who were usually in daily contact with the representatives of the Mandate government, the burden fell upon the Rabbi.
The Rabbi was the only senior figure who remained in the country, and his words were heard by the residents of the Jewish settlement as well as by the British rulers. A heavy burden of days suddenly fell upon his shoulders.
On the Sabbath, the 18th of Av, the Rabbi contacted John [Harry] Locke, the Chief Secretary (who was the highest British official present, as the High Commissioner was also abroad). He served as the Acting High Commissioner and spoke to him firmly, demanding vigorous measures against the Arab rioters. "The Mandate government," the Rabbi said, "has taken upon itself the responsibility for order and the security of life in the land, and it is demanded to fulfill its obligation."
When the Chief Secretary began to evade and claim it was not clear what could be done, the Rabbi reacted with fury and said: "Is it forbidden to shoot murderers?!"
— For such action—said the Chief Secretary—there is no order from a higher authority!
— What? — the Rabbi reacted urgently — to save innocent citizens from being attacked by murderers, you need a high order? I give you the order, in the name of human conscience, I demand you fulfill your duty and protect the lives of Jewish citizens in our land.
After some time, the Rabbi was invited to a reception at the High Commissioner's house. The Chief Secretary entered, and as was customary, he approached the guests to shake their hands. When he reached the Rabbi, he extended his hand—but the Rabbi's hand remained in the air. The Rabbi said in a moved and clear voice: "I am not ready to shake a hand responsible for spilling blood!"
The righteous Rabbi, Rabbi Aryeh Levin (of blessed memory), used to say: "Love of Israel—this is not an abstract concept. It must be demonstrated in deeds, to help and assist every person in Israel. From all the righteous and geniuses I have known, one could learn the attribute of love of Israel, but what I saw in our Master, Rabbi Kook—surpassed them all. He was ready to sacrifice his soul for each and every individual."
And so Rabbi Aryeh would recount, for he was close to the Rabbi’s house during those preceding days and for everything done by him and through him:
"I remember when the news of the terrible bloodshed in Hebron arrived, the terrible event of the killing on the holy Sabbath, the 18th of Av. On the morning of the Sabbath, the telephone lines in Hebron were cut, and only the 'Hadassah' [hospital] patients remained in contact with the center in Hebron. Horrifying rumors arrived, but the Rabbi did not want to believe them, as if the disaster that had occurred was so great [that it was unbelievable].
I accompanied the Rabbi to the 'Hadassah' hospital. We were allowed to contact Hebron, and he began to hear exactly what had happened there.
I remember those terrible moments with trembling. They are etched in my heart. I see the Rabbi as if it were today: hearing the details, the number of killed and wounded, the Rabbi collapsed and fell to the ground. When his spirit returned to him, he burst into bitter weeping, tore 'Kriyah' [the traditional mourning tear in clothing], sat on the ground, and recited the blessing 'The True Judge' (Dayan HaEmet).
In those moments, I saw the extent of the Rabbi's love of Israel. The Rabbi received the news of the disaster like a father hearing his sons had been killed, like a mourner receiving news of the death of his brothers and sisters."
The Rabbi bore the heavy burden of those days with supreme heroism, with multi-faceted work (caring for refugees, recruiting resources, etc.) toward internal needs; and with a storm of spirit toward outsiders, toward the British government. He turned to them both as a petitioner and a demander, and as a judge of justice and law. He did not fear that he might irritate the rulers, and he did not lower his voice before them. With the fury of a prophet of truth, he stood as a rebuker at the gate, in the name of God’s truth, demanding and seeking.
A special messenger was sent to Beirut (where the censorship of the Mandate government did not reach) and from there urgent, heart-wrenching, and alarming telegrams were sent by the Rabbi to all Jewish centers in the Diaspora, as well as to world leaders. They reported the truth of the situation and enlisted material and political aid simultaneously.
The Rabbi stood alone, and his firm stance left a great impression on the world. "Had it not been for one unique individual who stood up for his national and human honor, we would have had to tear ‘Kriyah’ [the mourning garment] also over the death of our honor" — so wrote and summarized the sharp-tongued writer Avigdor Hameiri (of blessed memory).
When the High Commissioner returned to the land, the Rabbi spoke "stern words" (devarim negidim) to him upon his arrival regarding the state of tension and that the leadership had been left in irresponsible hands.
The High Commissioner's first response to the events of those days was sincere, expressing the matters as they were experienced. In a manifesto published upon his return to the land, it was stated: "I have heard with horror of the atrocities committed by bands of cruel and bloodthirsty criminals... of the savage acts committed against the Jewish settlement, who were defenseless, acts characterized by cruelty to the elderly and children, accompanied by... atrocities in Hebron — as occurred today" (Doar HaYom, 27th of Av, 1929).
However, not much time passed before British policy established a "balance of weight," treating the attackers and the attacked with equal standing, and even prioritized the murderers over the murdered.
When the Rabbi reached the High Commissioner and demanded he disarm the Arab murderers, the Commissioner replied that the Jews must also be disarmed. The Rabbi reacted vigorously and said to the Commissioner: "Jews use weapons only for self-defense, while the Arabs use them for murder and robbery."
The Commissioner retorted: "Perhaps the Rabbi says this because he knows the religious youth, but there is secular youth and I cannot say the same of them."
"No" — the Rabbi stood his ground — "in the heart of every Jew, the commandment 'Thou shalt not murder' is engraved, and no Jew—whether religious or non-religious—will ever use a weapon for murder. Whereas the Arabs murdered peaceful citizens, slaughtered people with animalistic cruelty, and did not spare women or children." (End of the quote from Likutey HaRe'iyah).
The Rabbi also stood at the forefront of the media information campaign. With the outbreak of the 1929 riots, the Governor of Jerusalem, Keith-Roach, prohibited the appearance of Arab and Hebrew newspapers. However, despite this, Arab newspapers appeared as usual; and on the second day of the events, the Arab newspaper Al-Karmil appeared, serving as a mouthpiece for the Supreme Muslim Council, spreading the libelous lie that the Jews were the ones who began the slaughter. As is the way of those loathsome enemies, they fabricated atrocities and libels against the Jews. The Hebrew newspapers did not appear, but in their place, "one-time editions" were published, bringing detailed accounts of the slaughter and destruction in the Jewish settlements in the Land of Israel.
Here, too, the Rabbi enlisted in the campaign to refute the false libels of the Arabs. The Rabbi published through the "S.T.A." news agency [Jewish Telegraphic Agency] a protest as follows:
"Regarding the libels and the deceitful words being spread by our enemies' newspapers, specifically regarding the horrific libels appearing in the Syrian press, claiming that Jews desecrated the holy places of the Muslims, threw bombs at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, raped Arab women, slaughtered children, and other such abominable libels. Our Master, Rabbi Kook, gave his hand to the S.T.A. to declare that all these libels are lies and falsehoods. The Jews only defended themselves as much as they could against the savage attacks of the Arabs. In this statement, Rabbi Kook invites the honorable and distinguished members of the Muslim religion and science worldwide to come to the Land of Israel and see for themselves that there is no basis for all these libels, and that all the vile acts committed in the land were indeed done, but not by the Jews, but by the Arabs against their Jewish neighbors."
The Re’iyah’s Call to Renew the Jewish Settlement in Hebron after the 1929 Riots
After the slaughter, following which the British authorities expelled the survivors—the Jews of Hebron—to Jerusalem, the Re’iyah was among the greatest fighters to return them to their borders and renew the Jewish settlement in Hebron. The Rabbi fought for Hebron with great intensity, mobilizing central institutions in the settlement, the Zionist management in London, and Jewish communities worldwide for this mission. He acted tirelessly to elevate the memory of the holy martyrs and to fulfill the necessary mission arising from the terrible event—the settlement of Hebron.
In his eulogy for the victims of Hebron, our Master, Rabbi Kook, said: "For not just one thing did they do: they murdered and slaughtered, they burned and murdered with terrible cruelty, holy people, rabbis and elders, precious and honored young men, who spoke the word of God and His Torah all their conversation and desire, and all were 'strangled' [suffered] alive. They were slaughtered without mercy with horrific brutality; delicate and precious young men, righteous and pure, engaged in the Torah of God, were caught in the flames of holiness; not only did they [the rioters] loot and defile, they desecrated holy books, the holy Torah of God, which the whole world and all of Islam as a whole believes in its holiness, which is the word of the Living God."
