Eliezer Berland

Eliezer Berland (born December 26, 1937) is an Israeli Orthodox Jewish rabbi, convicted sex offender and fraudster affiliated with the Breslov Hasidic movement in Israel.

He is "rosh yeshiva" (head of the yeshiva) of Yeshivat Shuvu Bonim, also known as Yeshivat Nechamat Zion, in the Muslim Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem.

The movement is sometimes viewed as being a sect.

Berland is a member of Vaad Olami D'Chasedai Breslov (World Committee of Breslov Chassidim), a supervisory council for many Breslov activities.

Following allegations of sexual misconduct, Berland fled Israel, traveling from country to country to avoid extradition to Israel.

He was eventually returned to Israel, where he confessed to having committed rape, and was sentenced to 18 months' incarceration for his sexual attacks on two women, as well as his instructions to assault the husband of one of the women he had sexually assaulted.

In June 2021, Berland received another 18-month prison sentence for fraud.

A few months later, he became suspected of involvement in two murders.

Berland was born in Haifa.

He studied at the Knesses Chizkiyahu yeshiva in Kfar Hasidim under Rabbi Elyah Lopian and Rabbi Dov Yaffe.

After his marriage, daughter of Knesset member Shalom-Avraham Shaki, Berland joined the Ponevezh Yeshiva kollel and, later, the Volozhin Kollel in Bnei Brak.

He was a chavruta (study partner) with Rabbi Yaakov Yisrael Kanievsky, known as the Steipler Gaon.

Among his students is Rabbi Shalom Arush, rosh yeshiva of Chut Shel Chessed Yeshiva of Jerusalem.

Several women accused Berland of sexual harassment or rape.

The assaults came to light in 2012 when the newspaper Israel Hayom reported an incident in which one of Berland's students encountered him at home standing beside a naked woman.

His supporters expressed anger over the report, and the person who leaked the story to the media was later violently attacked.

After the police opened an investigation, Berland fled Israel, and spent time in the United States, Italy, and Switzerland.

He then left for Morocco, settling in Marrakesh.

Berland lived in Marrakesh for seven months and intended to establish a kehilla in Marrakesh, based on the Shuvu Banim yeshiva.

Thousands of followers began travelling to Marrakesh to celebrate holidays and some took up residency.

In November 2013, Berland and his students were ordered to leave Morocco by King Mohammed VI after a Moroccan newspaper published an article about the circumstances in which he fled Israel.

Berland's followers claimed that the king was merely concerned for their safety, as they were Hasidic Jews living in a Muslim country.

Berland is thought to have left Morocco for Cairo, Egypt.

He reportedly bought tickets for multiple destinations to confuse pursuers and in the end chose Zimbabwe.

From there, he allegedly took a flight to Johannesburg, South Africa, where he was taken in by a relative.

On April 14, 2014, the Chief Rabbi of South Africa, Warren Goldstein, called on the South African Jewish community not to shelter or support Berland.

Berland then flew to Zimbabwe, reportedly in a private jet owned by a wealthy follower.

He lived in an upscale hotel room in Bulawayo and led worship services for members of the small Zimbabwean Jewish community in a synagogue in the Bulawayo suburb of Khumalo.

He was joined by some of his followers.

He hired two attorneys in Israel due to the possibility of being forced to return to Israel if his options ran out.

On April 7, 2014, police raided Berland's hotel room and found him with some followers from Israel.

After it was established that his visitor's visa had expired, he was arrested and charged with remaining in Zimbabwe without a permit.

He pleaded guilty before a magistrate judge and was remanded to custody.

He was also reportedly questioned over the sexual assault allegations.

A magistrate judge gave him a choice between paying a $200 fine or three months in prison and ordered him expelled.

Berland paid the fine, and left for South Africa, returning to Johannesburg.

There, he lived in hiding, and managed, with help from followers, to narrowly escape two attempts by police to detain him.

The South African Jewish Report featured the first interview of a student trying to defend Berland.

He claimed there was a conspiracy against the rabbi due to religious persecution by a sectarian Israeli government.

In September 2014, Berland left South Africa to the Netherlands and was arrested after arriving at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol on September 11.