[Full video below.] A maamad hadlakas ner Chanukah for the lighting of the first ner was held Sunday evening at the Kosel HaMaaravi.
The maamad took place in the presence of the Rishon L’Tzion, Rav Dovid Yosef; the Rov of the Kosel and the Mekomos Hakedoshim, Rav Shmuel Rabinovitch; and the Mayor of Yerushalayim, Moshe Lion.
Also participating in the hadlakah was Segev Kalfon, who was recently released from Hamas captivity.
Speaking with visible emotion, Kalfon expressed profound gratitude for the opportunity to stand at the Kosel. He spoke of the first light as representing that small but pure spark of light that has the power to dispel immense darkness. He noted that he stood there not only for himself, but on behalf of those who remain in captivity, mentioning Ran Gvili by name, and expressed his resolve that the light of Chanukah should serve as the thread that will ultimately bring him home.
Mayor Moshe Lion, addressing the gathering, said that as Klal Yisroel lights the first ner of Chanukah, hearts are heavy with pain over the brutal terror attack that struck the Jewish community in Australia. He emphasized that silence in the face of antisemitism exacts a deadly price, and conveyed condolences to the families of the victims along with heartfelt tefillos for a refuah sheleimah for the wounded.
The mayor added that seeing Segev Kalfon standing at the Kosel—after enduring 738 days in captivity and returning home—was a moment of great joy and nachas for all of Klal Yisroel. He concluded by noting that Chanukah is a time of light and hope, and that from Yerushalayim goes forth a brachah to every Jewish home in Eretz Yisroel and throughout the galus.
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