Parts of a historic New York synagogue have been ordered to be vacated after a secret tunnel constructed underneath it destabilised the sanctuary. The city issued an emergency order on Wednesday to stabilise the structure.
A brawl erupted on Monday between police and community members who dug the tunnel, after a cement truck arrived to fill it. Nine people were arrested and charged with criminal mischief, reckless endangerment and obstructing governmental administration.
Officials said the tunnel, which was 60ft (18m) long, was not properly reinforced. New York's Department of Buildings said it had been on site since Tuesday to investigate the illegal excavation and its impact on neighbouring structures.
The tunnel was built under the Chabad-Lubavitch headquarters in Brooklyn, one of the most significant Jewish sites in the city. The building was formerly the home of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who died in 1994.
A spokesperson for Chabad blamed the incident on a group of extremist students. Rabbi Yehuda Krinsky, the chairman, thanked police and said the community was pained by the vandalism. One local told the New York Times that the men sought to hasten the synagogue's expansion due to overcrowding.
