Volunteers, Hired Guards Patrol Synagogues to Prevent Terrorism : Security: After anti-Semitic threats, congregations establish visible signs of increased vigilance and sheriff’s patrols are increased.
Two Jewish synagogues in Thousand Oaks have organized volunteer patrols to deter terrorist activities against their members, officials said Friday.
Leaders from the Temple Adat Elohim and Chabad of the Conejo say members of their congregations are trying to keep the international conflict from finding a domestic target for terrorism.
Allan Mallinger, 49, whose son attends Hebrew school at Temple Adat Elohim, said parents have volunteered to check cars of temple visitors for suspicious people and packages.
“With the general mood and feeling, certainly one possible target is our temples and synagogues,†he said. “The primary concern is not really the property, it’s the safety of the kids.â€
Jews have become keenly aware that their places of worship could become political targets and are establishing visible signs of increased security, including posting extra hired guards around their synagogues, schools and meeting places.
Authorities also recognize the threat to the 20,000 Jewish Americans who live in the county.
The Ventura County Sheriff’s Department has increased patrols around synagogues and community halls after the report of anti-Semitic threats against the Chabad this week, Sgt. Mike De Los Santos said.
“We’re trying to drive by as frequently as time permits,†he said.
The Chabad, Temples Adat Elohim and Etz Chaim in Thousand Oaks and the Brandeis-Bardin Institute in Simi Valley, a Jewish cultural center, all requested extra patrols by sheriff’s deputies, officials said.
The Chabad of the Conejo, which has Jewish centers in Westlake and Agoura, has received two threats from an unidentified caller, Rabbi Moshe Bryski said. He said the male caller telephoned last week and on the day the war broke out in Iraq.
“The connection was that the war was due to Israel, and we will let it out on the Jews,†Bryski said. Although Israel is on the side of the allies, the war may have stirred anti-Semitic sentiment, he said.
“People confuse anti-Arab feeling and anti-Iraq feeling and they lump them all together,†he said. “Any time there’s a world crisis, it’s the Jews’ fault.â€
Since the Chabad received the calls, a group of volunteers organized round-the-clock security around the Chabad’s two temples. However, Bryski said he hoped requests for increased patrols, both the sheriff’s deputies and civilian volunteers, would not alarm members of his congregation.
“People are a little panicky,†he said. “We’re trying to keep it calm.â€
Security is a year-round concern, said Linda Zweig, board president of Temple Etz Chaim.
Long before the war broke out, leaders from four Ventura County temples scheduled a meeting with representatives of the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith for Feb. 19 to discuss what security measures should be taken at local synagogues, she said.
Last December, three temples in Thousand Oaks and in Ventura were spray-painted with anti-Semitic graffiti. The recent firebombing of a Jewish temple in North Hollywood has taught Jews they should not be careless, she said.
“We don’t believe that there are terrorists on every corner looking to throw bombs in Thousand Oaks,†Zweig said. “But most of us have an exposed play yard. . . . Each of us, when we’ve had vandalism, has hired a uniformed guard.â€
For Mallinger, who runs an office supply business, watching out for his and other people’s children at Temple Adat Elohim is just part of the war effort.
“We’re letting people know that there’s somebody there and a car can’t zip through without being noticed,†he said. “I feel good about doing it, even on the nights when my child is not in class.â€
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