Page 124 - ISRAEL'S CRADLE

Monday, April 15, was the eve of the Passover holiday. Delegations of visitors continued to come to the area. Only a few were permitted to meet with the fasters, and they mostly remained in their rooms. Around noon, they convened to discuss the question of whether to continue with the strike or end it once the holiday began. They unanimously decided to continue the hunger strike, and conduct a proper Passover Seder with one restriction: they would only taste "Kazait" (a small amount) of matza and drink some tea. The chief rabbis, Herzog and Uziel, still believed that they should end their hunger strike. Golda Meir told in her memoirs that Rabbi Herzog sent them a clear message: "You must end your hunger strike, since Jewish law requires all Jews to eat in the Passover Seder." Conversely, the experts among the hunger strikers determined that "Kazait of matza" is still considered food...
The Passover Seder of the 15 fasters was conducted in the room of Yitzhak Ben-Zvi, President of the Jewish National Council, in the National Institutions Building, and he was joined by his wife Rachel Yanait Ben-Zvi. Three matzas were placed on a white tablecloth from which each of those present tasted "kazait", and 15 cups of tea. The guests of honor were the two chief rabbis, but it was Dr. Judah Kaufman (Even Shemuel), renowned expert in Judaism Studies and the Head of the Education Department of the Jewish National Council, who received the honor of presiding over the Seder.
He brought with him ancient and new Passover Haggadahs, including the first Passover Haggadah that was printed in Spain, five years prior to the expulsion in 1492. The participants read them and Dr. Kaufman added explanations and seasoned his statements with current events – Illegal immigration, the resilience of the hunger strikers in La Spezia, and the British’s treatment of the immigrants and the Yishuv. The youngest of the hunger strikers, Dr. Yitzhak Verfel-Rafael, then 32, read the Four Questions. A reporter for "Haaretz" added that the Chairman of the Jewish National Council David Remez and the editor of "Davar" Zalman Rubashov-Shazar participated in the reading of the Haggadah, as if they were experienced cantors. During the reading of the Haggadah, the participants made comments on current affairs.
At 10:30 PM, the two doctors, who had accompanied the fasters over the past three days, had entered the room and instructed them to return to their rooms, so as not to lose their strength. The fasters tried to argue with them, but the doctors׳ order was unequivocal: to return to the rooms. The doctors were particularly concerned with Zalman Rubashov-Shazar’s condition, who was very weak yet participated in the Seder despite this, sang loudly, and almost needed to be forcefully separated from his friends and sent to his room.
The following day, during the holiday, the square in front of the National Institutions Building was overflowing with thousands who came to express solidarity with the hunger strikers. Some even estimated their numbers to be ten thousand. Many delegations had arrived from every corner of the Land of Israel. Hundreds of worshipers, who finished the holiday prayer in synagogues throughout Jerusalem, walked to the square of the National Institutions Building wearing their prayer shawls. The greatest impression was made by worshipers from the Jerusalem synagogue of "Shirat Israel”,
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