Thai Authorities Raid Chabad on Erev Yom Kippur

On Sunday, Erev Yom Kippur, Thai authorities raided Chabad House in Patong, Phuket, with officials from Customs, the Office of the Consumer Protection Board, the Phuket Provincial Public Health Office, the Provincial Commercial Office, the Provincial Land Office, police, administrative authorities and local government all taking part.

During the raid, officials inspected the Chabad House and seized merchandise from its shop and sales areas, just hours before the onset of Yom Kippur.

The raid came after Phuket Governor Chotinarin Kerdsom ordered a sweeping seven-day investigation into Chabad Patong, directing officials to examine its property, buildings, businesses, companies and shareholders.

The latest action follows weeks of mounting pressure on Chabad and Jewish life in Thailand.

Ahead of Rosh Hashanah, more than 500 anti-Israel protesters marched through Patong toward Chabad House, carrying signs reading “SAVE PHUKET, NO ISRAEL” and “ISRAEL GET OUT OF PHUKET.”

The protest quickly crossed from anti-Israel rhetoric into open hostility toward Jews and Chabad. One speaker declared, “We don’t want this Chabad, we don’t want this Jewish synagogue,” while another warned that when Jews and Israelis come, “bombs will fall here.”

Phuket shluchim Rabbi Shalom and Tami Glitzenstein had planned a large Rosh Hashanah celebration for approximately 1,000 people at Chabad House and a nearby hotel. Following the protests and mounting pressure, authorities restricted the event, reducing its size, hours and locations. The main hotel celebration was ultimately canceled amid security concerns.

Government action against Jewish institutions has also extended beyond Phuket.

Earlier this month, authorities ordered a Jewish cemetery in Chachoengsao closed and gave the community seven days to remove the remains buried there. Four Jewish graves were subsequently exhumed and transferred to another cemetery.

Officials then used the cemetery case to widen their scrutiny of Chabad, examining connections between those involved with the cemetery and Chabad operations in Phuket, along with related companies, shareholders and landholdings.

Chabad centers and Jewish institutions have since faced repeated inspections and investigations, while anti-Chabad protests have continued publicly. At a separate demonstration in Bangkok, speakers accused Chabad centers of being part of a broader “Zionist” network acquiring land in Thailand.