Adv. Yoav Lalum, chairman of the Noar K’Halacha organization, sent an urgent letter to IDF Chief of the General Staff Eyal Zamir and Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, demanding that they immediately intervene and halt what he says is military enforcement targeting only members of the Sephardi community.
The letter was sent following the renewed arrests by the military police of bnei yeshivos defined as ‘deserters.” Almost every ben yeshivah arrested in proactive operations has been Sephardi.
Lalum wrote, “I respectfully demand immediate and urgent intervention, including a full investigation of all the facts, to prevent any suspicion of ethnic discrimination or selective enforcement by the IDF regarding the application of the law to Sephardi bnei yeshivos.”
Lalum noted that a simple review of the list of detainees attests that nearly all those arrested in the past year during proactive operations were from Sephardi backgrounds.
“This is an unacceptable result,” he emphasized. “It raises more than a suspicion that, chas v’chalilah, improper and illegitimate considerations are influencing the discretion of military enforcement authorities when they exercise their legal powers against draft evaders.”
He stressed that this appeal is a preliminary step before filing a petition to the Supreme Court, “with the hope that you will order a full investigation of the events and clarify how it is possible that only Sephardi bnei yeshivos were arrested in proactive operations.”
Lalum further claimed, “It goes without saying that these actions severely damage the trust of the Sephardi Chareidi public in the army and in any draft legislation—even one agreed upon by the Chareidi political establishment. Because of how the Chareidi leadership treats Sephardi children in the educational system, there is a real concern that those who will be forced to fill the quotas that may be agreed upon will be Sephardi Bnei Torah whose Torah is their occupation, while Ashkenazi troublemakers will receive deferrals.”
It should be noted that although it is true that Sephardi Bnei Torah have been targeted in proactive arrests, Lalum’s claim about the “Chareidi leadership” is not based on any facts, and there is no indication that Chareidi leaders would do such a thing or even have any influence over who is arrested. And in fact, Ashkenazi Gedolei Torah have repeatedly emphasized that they will fight for all Bnei Torah and have visited Sephardi Bnei Torah in prison. The mass atzeres tefillah was organized by Ashkenazi Gedolei Torah, and the huge demonstration organized by HaGaon HaRav Sholom Ber Sorotzkin, the Rosh Yeshivah of Ateres Shlomo, was for Ariel Shamai, a Sephardi bochur.
Concluding his letter, Lalum emphasized that the option of a petition to the Supreme Court remains on the table: “It must be stated clearly that the duty of the IDF, as the army of the people, has a duty to demonstrate that there is no ethnic discrimination in its conduct regarding Sephardi Chareidim.”
(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)
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9 Responses
https://www.theyeshivaworld.com/coffeeroom/topic/the-fourth-reich-of-israel
I’m sure she’s going to care about which boys you feel she singled out. She hates any torah learner this is from her to begin with
R Elyashiv set the quota for the maximum percentage of sefardim allowed in ashkenazi yeshivos and girl schools.
He raised the percentage before his Petira.
Rav Shtienman said he couldn’t raise the percentage since it was set already by R Elyashiv.
These are pretty well known in Israel.
It is true that the Military Police are much more likely to target Sephardim, bochurim who live outside the major Chareidi population centers, and especially Sephardim who also live outside the major Chareidi population centers. The reason is they fear triggering Hafganot, which are easier to organize in major centers and are mostly led by Ashkenazim. The reality is that the Ashkenazim protest for Sephardi bochurim also. They also (often erroneously) believe that Sephardim are more amenable to being pressured into agreeing to join the IDF.
the Jewish state.
yidposhut:
That has nothing to do with the wicked Zionists targeting sefardim for shmad.
To Yid not so Pashut:
I heard from reliable sources that Rav Elyashiv never ever set a quota
For how many Sfardim to accept.
I know for a fact that Rabbi Shteinman helped hundreds and hundreds of Sfardim in many ways. No way in the world he would limit how many Sfardim to accept.
Maybe police are (mostly correctly) thinking that Sephardi community, and Sephardi Rabonim will not organize protests (aka riots). It could be also that Sephardi roshei yeshivot are not going along with “protecting” those who are not really full-time learners
by providing them with certification of such.
Avraham:
“Never set” is word games. Never set, but approved the quota used by certain schools and seminaries. Later raising the quota.
R Shteinman helped many people including Sefardim. This doesn’t change the facts he claimed he was unable to raise the quota R Rlyashiv had approved. Maybe he felt Rosh Yeshivas and principles wouldn’t listen.
I’m not arguing as to whether they were right or wrong (despite my views), rather that the articles denial of discrimination is only possible due to the ignorance of the American audience to well known facts on the ground in Israel.
This exists in the US as well. Ask a Sefardi in Lakewood, Monsey or Brooklyn regarding getting into “better” (Yeshivish/Right wing) Ashkenazi run Yeshivos and schools.They all have some Sefardi students. The bar is just much higher.
https://www.haaretz.com/2011-07-13/ty-article/rabbi-elyashiv-wants-ministry-out-of-placement-of-haredi-schoolgirls/0000017f-e064-d9aa-afff-f97c7d4c0000
“Several years ago, Elyashiv convened a rabbinical committee of three close associates that was to deal with cases of girls who were not placed in school, but also maintain the Ashkenazi presence at the schools at a minimum of 70 percent. ”
Here is a qoute from R Ovadia Yosef :
https://www.ynetnews.com/jewish-world/article/3911070
“There is discrimination, I’m not denying that, to this very day there are Ashkenazi yeshivas with a 20-30% quota for Sephardim. Why?! They won’t admit a Sephardi student if it’s beyond the quota. That’s the situation. The Torah doesn’t belong to the Ashkenazim, but to us all!…Are we inferior to them? No, and our Torah is not inferior to their Torah.”