It is now clear to all that the austerity state budget which will deliver a fatal blow to many chareidi yeshivos chas v’sholom will strike equally as hard in the dati leumi community, hitting hesder yeshivot and dati leumi yeshivot gavoha too.

Eitan Ozeri, who serves as the secretary of the national Hesder Yeshivot network has sent an urgent letter to Bayit Yehudi MKs seeking assistance. In his letter Ozeri explains that since the beginning of the year, state assistance for hesder yeshivot has been cut 20% as a result of the government’s failure to pass the 2013 state budget. The yeshivot were hit with an additional 20% cut in May 2013, leaving only 60% of the original state aid for the hesder network.

Ozeri questions how this can occur while the Bayit Yehudi party is a senior member of the coalition, adding “we cannot permit this substantial blow to the yeshivos in general, especially the hesder network, one that has been awarded the Israel prize.”

Hesder yeshivot directors are planning to meet in urgent session in Bayit Vegan next week to discuss the worrisome financial realities facing their chinuch network. The blow to hesder yeshivot place both dati leumi and chareidi yeshivos in the same boat and may lead to cooperation between the camps towards pressuring elected officials for increased yeshiva funding.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)