Greece plot shows Jews’ vulnerability abroad

Australian-Israeli rabbi who visited Chabad House in Athens speaks to ‘Post’

Australian-Israeli Selwyn Franklin was in complete shock and felt in profound danger when he heard that the Chabad Center in Athens where he was praying daily during a vacation this week had been targeted by Iran, he told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday.

“I came out of the Chabad and I suddenly stopped. I saw the cameras outside – eight teams of media and cameras and reporters,” said Franklin when the story about Iran’s terror plot broke Tuesday night.

The Mossad helped Greece crack an Iranian terror cell, according to a statement by the Prime Minister’s Office that came out that night shortly

after Greek media reported arrests.

The spy agency said that it had assisted Greece with analyzing and taking apart Iran’s operating procedures to solve the puzzle of the underlying crime and method of operation of the terror organization involved.

“This is another example of Iran trying to use terror against Israeli and Jewish targets overseas,” said the clandestine agency, referring to the arrests of two Pakistani men with Iranian connections who Greece had arrested for plans to target the Chabad.

After escaping the media frenzy outside on Tuesday night, Franklin, an ordained rabbi, said he quickly made his way back to his hotel.

When he arrived at his hotel, he said friends had sent him a link “to the Post’s story that these guys [the Iranian-linked terrorists] had been apprehended, that they had targeted the Chabad and the affiliated restaurants. The result was we [he and his wife] decided we needed to get out of there.”

Continuing, he said, “Suddenly, I realized how dangerous a situation it was and might have been. It is not easy to find a parking spot outside the Chabad in Athens. It is a convoluted neighborhood like Jerusalem’s Old City. If they were observing what was going on, they would see me driving and managing to find parking and then I could have been a marked man. I could have been targeted.”

Next, he stated, “There are a lot of innocent people visiting from across the globe. The Chabad representative had been there for around 20 years. They were quite concerned. I said to him ‘you know what happened in Mumbai?’ He responded, ‘Well, the possibility is horrific.’” (A Chabad

House in Mumbai was attacked by terrorists in 2008.)

“I suddenly realized the vulnerability of the Jewish people around the world. In Israel, there is the threat of terror, but at least there is a strong network of security which protects us.”

Franklin said, “Certainly overseas, Jews are totally and utterly vulnerable. There is no way to be protected. That was why we decided it was time to leave.”

On Wednesday, he said, “I went back to prayers the next morning. When I left the Chabad, I was very innocent about it when a camera man came down to me.” Franklin said before he realized what was happening, camera crews were filming him and he realized his face was now being broadcast on Greek TV.

He expressed concern also that after he had been interviewed “that maybe that will result in a personal attack against me.” He described being in other difficult security situations, but nothing as scary.

For example, he said that before he emigrated to Australia he and his family “took a stand in South Africa against the apartheid system. We got threatening phone calls. That was why ultimately we left South Africa.”

Once they were spooked by the terror story, they decided to race back to Israel early, but did not even notify another Greek television media outlet that wanted to talk to him until he was about to get on an airplane back to Israel.