For centuries, Jews have sought to enter and pray at the Cave of Machpelah, the Cave of the Patriarchs, in Hevron. A new video by the Land of Israel Network and Yishai Fleisher sheds light on the history of the Cave of Machpelah and includes a first-hand account of a clandestine visit to the cave itself, tens of meters below the current ground level.
Noam Arnon, one of the pioneers and leaders of the movement to renew Jewish settlement in Hevron, was one of a select few individuals who, 30 years ago, in the middle of the night, participated in an expedition to visit the cave itself.
Arnon describes crawling in a tunnel leading to a cave. They discovered a double cave, as per the cave’s name; the Hebrew word "machpelah" means double. In the cave, they discovered human bones and artifacts from the time of the First Temple, 2,500 to 3,000 years ago.