Last update - 00:00 02/08/2007
Buyers storm half-built apartments after rumors contractor went bankrupt
Dozens of ultra-Orthodox Jews on Thursday broke into apartments under construction purchased from the Heftsiba construction company following reports the firm may have gone bankrupt.
The group launched a concerted effort late Wednesday night operating simultaneously in several areas across the country. The families entered the construction sites and refused to leave, while others demonstrated at the company's offices in Jerusalem.
Meanwhile, a senior Heftsiba employee tried to commit suicide Wednesday afternoon at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Jerusalem. He was taken to the hospital in moderate condition.
In Beitar Ilit, the ultra-Orthodox families overran some 50 apartments on which construction is almost complete. Heftsiba customers broke into the apartments through the balconies and the windows.
Reports that the company had gone under began to spread Wednesday among the Haredi community. Many of those invested in the apartments sought the advice of ultra-Orthodox real estate experts, and were advised to enter the homes and refuse to leave in order to establish ownership. The group has categorically denied claims the operation had been carried out by the orders of rabbis. "You don't need to consult a rabbi to save $150,000," said the mayor of Beitar Ilit.