During a Yahadut Hatorah faction meeting earlier this week a decision was made to break into two teams as efforts continue to create a chareidi/dati bloc in Knesset. One team includes Moshe Gafne and Yaakov Litzman, dealing with Shas, while Menachem Eliezer Moses and Meir Porush will seek to bring Naftali Bennett and his Bayit HaYehudi Party onboard. The faction members have not shared with the media just how they hope to tackle the share the burden issue with the dati leumi party headed by Bennett, a strong proponent of drafting Bnei Yeshivos.
Faction members are quite aware of the difficult task ahead, aware of the skepticism and pessimism, but feel they must nonetheless try to unite the Shomer Shabbos elected officials regardless of the different hashkafos.
The meeting held on Monday 17 Shevat 5773 was closed to the media, permitting the faction to reach a decision on its starting point in upcoming coalition talks. They also reportedly set red lines which cannot and will not be crossed in those talks aimed at bringing them into the coalition government.
According to a Kikar Shabbat report, Bayit Yehudi’s MK Uri Ariel has already contacted Porush, requesting a meeting which will also include Naftali Bennett. Such a meeting will permit them to coordinate on issues of commonality towards presenting a united front to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. Deputy Minister Moses announced that from his viewpoint, Bayit HaYehudi is a “natural partner” to Yahadut Hatorah, explaining half of that party’s voters educate their children in chareidi in ”ישיבות קדושות” and they are now fearful of what appears will be an imminent draft into the military of these Bnei Torah.
The faction members point out that if there is cooperation among the frum MKs, they represent a third of the 120 MKs in Knesset so an effort in this direction may yield significant results.
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8 Responses
“Bennett, a strong proponent of drafting Bnei Yeshivos” – Are you sure of that? I seem to recall that before the elections he said he was against forcibly drafting yeshiva student. Or doesn’t it matter what someone says before elections?
This would be a NES GADOL.
1. That occured in the first elections after Israeli independence – in part out of fear that a far left block including communists would come to power and Israel would join the Soviet bloc.
2. The Bayit Yehudi people believe that Jewish control of Eretz Yisrael, even if exercised by Jews who reject mitzvos, is so important that we should be willing to give up our lives for it, and “kal v’homer” to regard it as a mitzvah to serve in the army. From their point of view, the fact that you have a Jewish girl wearing a skimpy bathing soon at the Miss World contest, and Jewish athletes playing on Shabbos, while being against halacha, or part of the “beginning of the redemption” since they are doing it as “Israelis.” The Hareidim disagree.
3. Depending on group, Hareidim see the “medinah” as at best a non-Jewish government ruling Eretz Yisrael that happends to have a lot of Jews in it, and at worse a serious aveirah in itself. Almost by definition, Hareidim see Torah and Mitsvos as some we should be willing to give up our lives for, and either see serving in the army as Bitul Torah (at best), or an aveirah (at worst).
4. Most hareidim rabbanim would give up land for peace, and many if not most would give up the concept of a “Jewish” state in return for peace. Unless the Religious Zionists would give up the “state” in return for a secured right to live anywhere and everywhere in Eretz Yisrael, that is a real difference (albeit one we won’t notice unless the Arabs ever get serious about peace).
30 seats is a quarter, not a third 🙂
akuperma: They should also worry that the next “special deal” to go after the chareidi are drafted is the end of the hesder system. After all, secular Israelis don’t get a similar arrangement with regular universities.
Most hareidim rabbanim would give up land for peace, and many if not most would give up the concept of a “Jewish” state in return for peace —- IF and WHEN they give up land for peace, do they imagine that limud Hatorah in Yeshivos and Kollelim with survive at that turmulent time when people are in bunkers and fighting for their lives?
Shas+Yaahadut+Beit Leumi would be a third.
akuperma, as usual you make chareidim in Israel out to be all satmar and neturei karta. Maybe you should move here and learn what people here really think. There are definitely people who think the way you are describing but there are many other chareidim who think VERY differently than this. I think you have a very skewed vision of the Jewish people and certainly of those of us living in & fighting for our Land. Your descriptions – and many other commenters here as well – of zionists (especially religious zionists) is sometimes way off base (“at best”) and outright motzei shem rah (“at worst”).