Ask The Rabbi

Ask The Rabbi

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If there are ants on the counter on Shabbat, and they are disturbing me very much, may I rinse the counter with water in order to clean the counter of ants?

It is not permissible to wash the counter when you know that the ants will die, and that is your intention. Since ants are not considered dangerous to people it is not permissible to kill them, even in an indirect manner. If you are rinsing the counter in any case and your intention is not to kill the ants on Shabbat, then you may rinse it even though some ants will die.

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