Media personality Galit Gutman caused a huge furor on Friday morning when she said on Channel 12’s Keshet TV program that Charedim are “bloodsuckers who are milking Israeli society” in reference to the funds promised to the Chareidi parties in coalition agreements.
Media personality Ariel Schnabel responded by stating: “Galit Gutman isn’t the story. The story is that there is only one Western country where it’s possible to say on TV that a certain group of people are ‘bloodsuckers’ without a huge scandal breaking out. What a disgrace to the Israeli media, a disgrace to those who consider themselves ‘liberal’. Look what hatred comes out of you. Where will you end up?”
Radio 103FM host Erel Segal said. “‘Bloodsuckers’ and in German ‘Sie saugen unser Blut’ – Israel, May 2023 – the most watched channel in Israel. Thank you to Keshet…I wonder if Yad Vashem would consider this the ‘slippery slope.'”
UTJ MK Yitzchak Pindrus responded: “Even in the Labour Party in the UK they removed a member of parliament who called ‘Talmudic Jews’ bloodsuckers. Even they understand that Goebbels’ terminology can never be used.”
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu stated: “I condemn Galit Gutman’s ugly and incitement statement against the Chareidi sector in Israel, which is reminiscent of statements directed against our people in the past.”
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir commented: “Our Chareredi brothers are ‘bloodsuckers’? Have we gone mad? Galit Gutman is inciting with anti-Semitism that has been used all these years to murder and persecute Jews. Bushah!”
Keshet issued a statement on Friday afternoon saying: “Keshet strongly condemns Galit Gutman’s statement regarding the Chareidi sector on live broadcast this morning. The statements are unacceptable and should not have been said in any way. We regret this and apologize for the unnecessary harm.”
“Gutman apologized for the wording of her statement and the generalization of an entire sector and was summoned to an urgent hearing with her managers, which will take place on Sunday morning.”
Galit Gutman published an apology on her social media accounts: “I would like to apologize from the bottom of my heart if I offended an entire sector,” she wrote. “I love the State of Israel, and out of concern for its future, I have sharp criticism of the representatives of the Chareidi sector in the Knesset. The statements were said during a discussion on the government budget and the property tax fund. But I had no intention of harming the sector as a whole. I apologize to anyone who was hurt by these statements.”
(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
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11 Responses
Referring to Hareidim as blood-suckers is wrong and inaccurate. Extortionists is correct and accurate.
may the ticks and fleas of 1,000 camels infest her armpits
So you do not regret hurting some…
“I would like to apologize from the bottom of my heart if….”
You always know if a person is sincere when they say the word if
i’m Charedi and live in israel . I have two jobs. My wife has two jobs.
This were obviously disgusting comments, but we should be just as much outraged when certain sectors of Chareidim constantly call Zionim “Nazis”, and it’s weird that we don’t seem to care too much. Please no hypocrisy!
May this woman Rot in Gehinnon, for these remarks our children don’t need to bear nor does the world
אל תדין את חברך עד שתגיע למקומו
What these people say is absolutely terrible but I get where they’re coming from. They see a huge segment of the population not serving in the army, not doing sherut leumi, not getting an education that can help them earn a decent living, and paying very little in taxes. These people go to the army, work long hours to provide for their families, pay relatively high taxes already and are not excited that this large part of the population is using its leverage to get more money.
Everyone here highly values sitting and learning, but it probably scares most of them to think of their children and grandchildren learning for thirty or forty years and having no decent way to earn a living. And unless you’re perfectly happy to pay for all of your children and grandchildren to learn all day for many years, then I think you have to at least a bit understand their side. You’re scared and not excited about that idea, and so are they.
How much money does Israel take from the US? How Much Money do Israeli
Arabs get?
Her half hearted and carfully worded so-called “apology” is even worse than her initial statement!
She is worried about the future of the state of Israel; so what are we going to do about it – verbally and physically attack 1m citizens who volunteer in Hatzoloh, Zaka, Ezra Umarpeh, Peyilim, Chevrah Kaddishah etc. etc. and who contribute most to the growth of the Jewish Community in Israel, without them, before long the Israeli Arabs will have the majority.
PleaseStayCalm: “i’m Charedi and live in israel . I have two jobs. My wife has two jobs.”
Everyone out there knows that there are some chareidim who work. And that some chareidim hold advanced degrees, some are doctors and lawyers, some run very large and successful businesses, employ hundreds of people, pay millions of dollars of taxes. All this is obvious and clear.
What is also obvious and clear is that the overwhelming part of the chareidi population does not work. This places a tremendous strain on the rest of the system since we’re not discussing a tiny small portion of the population, but a very very large part of the population. Imagine if in the US all Asians did not work and instead prayed all day. And imagine that they insisted that the US fund their schools, etc, etc. Most Americans would be up in arms. In this country it’s even more complicated because while the rest of the population sacrifices three years of their lives, often putting their own lives on the line, and many who don’t at least do sherut leumi, the large majority of the chareidi population does not.
To PleaseStayCalm, it is really great that you work to support yourself and your family. But in the same way you can’t imagine supporting all of your children and grandchildren to sit and learn, so too much of the country isn’t interesting in supporting them either.