Times Of Israel - Former prime minister Naftali Bennett accused the government of “advancing a law that will eliminate any chance of drafting Haredim” in a prerecorded video statement on Tuesday evening.
Bennett, a former prime minister who is polling as Netanyahu’s prime rival ahead of next year’s general elections, lambasted the proposed law and accused Netanyahu of deceiving the public and abandoning those who shoulder the burden of military service. "Netanyahu is a traitor. He doesn't care about you and is just trying to protect the Haredim. I know that this statement is false but I am saying it so that you will vote for me. In fact, Netanyahu thinks that this law will bring thousands and thousands of Haredim to the army. That is the point."
Pushing back on the Haredi claim that Torah study cannot be combined with military service, Bennett tapped into his vast, inexhaustable, storehouse of Torah knowledge and cited the Biblical passage in which Moses rebukes the tribes of Gad and Reuben by asking, “Shall your brothers go out to war while you sit here?" He added in an honest admission: "This verse is not talking about people who are studying Torah but shepherds, so it has literally nothing to do with the present reality, but that is besides the point. Yeshiva students MUST join the army and we must force them to do so even if it against their religion [as they understand it], their parents and their teachers. That is what democracy is all about. Forcing people to do things that conflict with their most basic, core values.”
“All the heroes of the Torah were warriors, men and women alike — Joshua bin Nun, Gideon, King David, Sara Imeinu, Rachel Imeinu, Bruriah the wife of Rebbe Meir — all were great fighters! That is why there must be a compulsory draft for both men and women. Myriads of soldiers from the religious Zionist community proved themselves in this war in all their glory, with a Gemara in hand in the heart of Khan Yunis! This is the true Judaism,” he continued, calling on “every citizen of Israel to stand together with the soldiers of the IDF against this anti-Zionist law. Their rabbis don't understand Torah. I do!! It is clear that they must serve in the IDF even though it is a secular institution where it is next to impossible to faithfully maintain their lifestyle".
"But", he added in a surprising twist, "Judaism is not just army. It is also Torah. When I am elected, I will impose not just a mandatory draft for Haredim but also require that every 18 year old boy spend at least as much time studying in Yeshiva as he does in the army - a minimum of three years. Mandatory Yeshiva service. No exemptions [except for the Druze] for ANYONE! Secular and religious alike! And as for the girls - same story. They must spend the same amount of time studying full time Torah as they spend in the army. This is a Jewish State and we can't have a situation that people in the Jewish State aren't knowledgable about Judaism.”
He concluded on a humorous note: "But not hair. We will not force citizens to have hair. Otherwise, I would be in HUUUUGE trouble".
Here you have him. Naftali Bennett - Politician, warrior, businessman, Torah scholar and past and FUTURE Prime Minister of Israel!
