Both the frum community and the secularists appear quite determined in the battle over the future religious character of Jerusalem’s Kiryat Yovel neighborhood. Secularist activists have announced they plan an unrelenting battle, adding chareidi families are welcome to live in the community, “but they must seek their chareidi religious services elsewhere”.

It appears that to date, the opponents to the chareidim focused on challenging the illegal aspect of the frum community, minyanim which violated zoning laws by congregating in stores and private homes. Now, they are stepping up the rules of play to include legal aspects of life too, including opposition to granting permits for chareidi daycare centers and all other aspects of life pertaining to the area’s new residents.

One of the battlefronts includes housing that belongs to Hebrew University, apartments that closed about 2.5 weeks ago and now up for sale. The future of these 64 housing units will make a significant difference to the side which succeeds in purchasing them. Hebrew U. has significantly raised the price of the units, prompting the lawyer representing chareidi interests to turn to the court, insisting the conditions now being spelled out by Hebrew U. did not appear in the original tender. Secularists are quite concerned that the “chareidim” will succeed in taking over the housing units in question.

University officials point out they are compelled to act within the framework of the law and the institutions interest in this deal is monetary gain, distancing itself from the Kiryat Yovel conflict.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)