Overview

Chabad Synagogue Tunnels, also known as Crown Heights Jewish Tunnel, refers to a viral news story about underground tunnels dug underneath the Chabad-Lubavitch World Headquarters in New York City, specifically the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn. The incident caused a riot and arrests when the police and construction crews attempted to fill in the secret tunnel and many of the synagogue's men attempted to stop them. Numerous clips from the clash with police and a video of a Hasidic man crawling out from a secret sewer tunnel became viral topics on the internet in early January 2024, also inspiring memes across social media referencing the tunnels.

Background

On January 8th, 2024, a series of viral videos spread across social media showing the interiors of the Chabad-Lubavitch World Headquarters in Brooklyn, New York being torn apart after it was revealed some underground tunnels were dug by a small group of “young agitators,” according to Chabad Chairman Yehuda Krinsky.^[1] The X^[2] page @FrumTikTok was one of the earliest to upload content about the incident (has since been deleted), showing a chaotic scene "after Bochurim ripped wooden panels to prevent a cement truck from sealing off the recently discovered tunnels." The post amassed 7.6 million views and 13,000 likes in less than 24 hours.

The story was quickly picked up by several media outlets as it began trending online. According to reports from the New York Post,^[10] members were digging the tunnel under the synagogue in Crown Heights for nearly a year and were attempting to reach an abandoned women's mikvah (a ritual bath) that was "around the corner" to expand the building.

Developments

Late at night on January 9th, 2024, the official X^[3] page of the Chabad Lubavitch World Headquarters posted a statement about the tunnels and said, "These odious actions will be investigated, and the sanctity of the synagogue will be restored. Our thanks to the NYPD for their professionalism and sensitivity." The post (shown below) received more than 1,200 likes and 410 retweets in a few hours.

An article posted by the Crown Heights^[5] website alleges the tunnels were discovered sometime in mid-December 2023 "after a series of incidents rang alarm bells with the Gabboim of 770." The article also mentions some rumors about the reason the tunnels were dug, stating that "it appears that a group of bochurim began digging around six months ago in an attempt to 'expand 770.'" The article also reported that the tunnel extended all the way under 770 Eastern Parkway where it burrowed under the Kingston Avenue women's section, also potentially destabilizing it.

Also on January 8th, 2024, X^[9] page @FrumTikTok shared the video of an NYPD officer negotiating with people inside the Chabad HQ, saying, "I want to clear the whole Shul [Synagogue] out, they want to fix this tonight." The video (since deleted) amassed over 9 million views and 6,300 likes in a day.

Hasidic Man Crawling Out From Secret Sewer Tunnel

One particularly viral moment was recorded by a bystander who found a secret entrance to the tunnels from a drainage grate. The X^[4] page @FrumTikTok shared the video on January 8th, 2024, of a Hasidic man crawling out from the secret sewer tunnel (shown below), which amassed over 12 million views and 12,000 likes in a day. (since deleted, replacement shown below)

On January 9th, X^[7] user @DramaAlert posted a video (shown below) in which the secret tunnel entrance was being sealed. The post amassed more than 13,100 views and 97 likes in a few hours.

Online Reactions

The chaotic scene inside the Chabad-Lubavitch HQ and many other clips from the incident instantly became the source of memes and jokes on the internet as the story spread in early January 2024. For instance, on January 9th, 2024, X^[6] user @pissvortex replied to the video of the Hasidic man crawling out of the sewer saying how hard it would be trying to tell people what he just witnessed without the video (shown below, left) to prove it. The post amassed over 108,000 likes and 9,900 retweets in a few hours.

On the same day X^[8] user @thltd_ posted a Smug Frog meme accompanied by the caption "Huge tunnel system under Chabad HQ, located opposite children's museum, suspicious stained mattresses pulled out of tunnels, baby chair inside tunnels, NYPD turns up with cement to immediately fill the tunnels instead of investigating their purpose." The post (shown below, right) received over 305 likes and 48 retweets in a few hours.

The tunnels were also discussed and reposted in numerous threads on Reddit. For example, late on January 8th, Redditor Upper_Conversation_9 posted footage of the incident to the /r/PublicFreakout^[11] subreddit, receiving over 7,700 upvotes and 1,800 comments in 15 hours (seen below). The tunnels were also mentioned in a post on the /r/conspiracy^[12] subreddit that same day, receiving over 1,900 upvotes and 400 comments in a similar timeframe.

Search Interest

External References