While by any margin of judging his actions as a chareidi MK, Moshe Gafne is indeed a leading figure in Knesset working to protect the rights of chareidi citizens. However, from time-to-time he seems to put his foot in his mouth saying something to anger one tzibur or another. In the past, when angered at settlers, Gafne has been heard threatening he would support a future vote giving yishuvim away.

Some feel that the following comments, made by Gafne, are harmful to the cause and would have best not been said. Gafne told the Haaretz-sponsored Israel Peace Conference he supports an agreement with the Palestinians.

“I do not like the legislation that this government brings on all kinds of right-wing issues,” Gafne said.

Gafne explained why he joined a right-wing government: “They always ask me in lectures of this kind – you are politically more inclined to the left, why do not you go with them, because they are sitting with the Reform?”

In a conversation with Haaretz editor Aluf Benn, Gafne added: “I will not sit with the Reform, the Reform being the biggest blow to the Jewish People. I do not have someone saying to me, ‘In matters that are important to you, we are with you in fire and water.’ I speak my mind with Netanyahu in the Knesset plenum. I am not a leftist, I am acting wiser, and on the political issues I am close to the left.”

Gafne adds “The leftists are more intelligent than the right-wing”, leading to a round of applause from the conference audience.

“The first important thing is that the State of Israel be a Jewish state, otherwise we have no right to conduct negotiations with the Palestinians – they were here before us, we removed them from here,” said the Finance Committee chairman.

He quickly explained: “If we do not have the historical right that the Jewish people have here, we have no rights.”

Regarding Peleg protests, Gafne claimed that the demonstrations were aimed at him and his party members.

“I’m part of the establishment, part of the system, they want us not to be there, I’m the first in the Knesset plenum to condemn those who went to Iran, so what if they look like me? People must know how to make the distinction”.

At the Likud’s chareidi headquarters, MK Gafne’s response to the Haaretz conference, in which he admitted that he was a leftist and that the Arabs had preceded the Jews in the Land of Israel did not go over well.

“The man is totally cut off from the chareidi public. When we warned before elections that Gafne is left-wing, we meant it. The chareidi tzibur opposes the messianic fantasies of the left, and resolutely opposes the abandonment of parts of the land by the Palestinian murderers to put it mildly.”

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)