Following the tragedy in a Jerusalem daycare on Monday, in which two innocent babies died, there were shocking reactions to their deaths on online platforms, with some surfers going so far as to almost rejoice in the deaths—”two less Chareidim.”
The reactions were so shocking that even Yair Lapid, himself a master of incitement against Chareidim, condemned them, writing, “I share in the sorrow of the families of the two babies who lost their lives in the tragedy at the daycare in Jerusalem. I’m shocked by the harsh reactions online about two-month-old and four-month-old babies. The death of children is terrible and heartbreaking; it must not be brought into any political debate.”
Immediately after reports of the tragedy, a Channel 13 reporter wrote on X: “The goal that the State of Israel should strive for: that in 50 years there will be no Chareidi society. At all. Only in museums.”
He later deleted the post, but not before it was seen by many people who responded with fury, with one writing, “Is this in German?” Some people asked what the reaction would be if the word “Chareidi” was replaced with “leftist” or “Arab.”
The reporter published a “clarification,” stating, “I deleted the tweet about Chareidi society. It was unsuccessful and misunderstood. I was making a completely sociological and not theological distinction, and here’s what I think: In the 21st century there is no place for a closed society in the name of religious piety. It doesn’t exist anywhere in the world, and it’s a real existential threat,” he claimed.
“If you are already looking for culprits in the situation apropos the Attorney General, you can go to Ben-Gurion, who allowed this arrangement and perpetuated a closed and unproductive society,” he continued. “Every person has the right to choose how to live, certainly in terms of his religious faith, but it cannot be at the expense of society in general. This is also an opportunity to apologize from the bottom of my heart if anyone was hurt by the previous tweet.”
It should be noted that in recent years, there were a number of cases in which severe abuse was uncovered by babysitters at Israeli secular daycares. Interestingly, no outcry was heard against secular society.
(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)
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25 Responses
Gadol hamachtio ve’hahorgo, yoser min hamachtio
The joke is in 25 years half of the Israeli population will be Chareidim. And in fifty years all of the Israeli population will be Chareidim. Only the Chareidim have large families unlike the secular many dont marry or are gay or have tops one or two kids. Many are leaving Israel as well going to Europe or India. Time is on our side.
Judaism survived millennia without chareidism, and it can do so again.
The gloves are off what can I tell you the hatred for religious people in the Torah is higher than during World War II and it’s coming from Jews. I don’t see how the state is going to even survive another year with such animosity and people celebrating the death of Jewish babies. Last time when the Jews went to war with each other it took an October 7th to quiet them down for a while, and instead of learning their lesson they decided to turn religious people into the Demons of society and try to starve them to death day by day. It will take another big lesson to quiet them down again
finally the Zionists are saying what we knew all along.
This is the place we are being told to make aliyah to?
Apropos BG ימח שמו. He already made such a prediction with a time frame of 15, not 50 years. Grass has grown on his kever for more than 50 years, and we are still here. The place where he made that speech (the ‘Edison Theater’ just outside Meah Shearim) was recently purchased by Chareidi real estate developers who built there an apartment complex for Satmar Chassidim…
Didn’t Hitler say that?
Religious Jews are the future. Secular Jews intermarry and assimilate into the non-Jewish world. If it were not for Orthodox Jews, there would not be any Jews today. Most of the secular Jews have small families with their children now living in the USA. In the meantime, the religious Jews are multiplying like rabbits and want to stay in Israel. Only unelected officials (who represent the Oligarchs) can wage a war on the charedim.
Are you shocked that there are some Hareidim who have gone from non-support of the Medinah to active opposition (sometimes by joining anti-Israel protests, or even providing assistance to the Medinah’s enemies – basically on the theory that the enemy of my enemy is my friend)? Hareidim are roughly the same percentage of Israelis as Blacks are in America, so one should ask how the American government reacts to organizations demanding an all-white America?
According to many posters here, Israel is the only safe place on the planet for Jews. An utterance of this sort, even on social media (and subsequently deleted), should put the brakes on that sentiment.
My Goodness, How tragic to blame the Chareidi’s for uncalled for thinking that they are not to survive. There is a place in H”M’s world for every Yiddishe Neshami. It is a commandment that we love our fellow Yid as ourselves. Hi Nei Mat tov umanyim shevet achim gam yachad. Please do not use this Reply Section as a reason to Loshen Hara or Loshen Rechilus a group of Yiddishe Neshami who you are not allowing them to defend themselves. We, in H”M’s world don’t have to completely understand other Yidden, but we are commanded by G-D to build up the Jewish Communities of the world, not to tear them down. Sincerely, Rebbetzin Yehudit Chana Chaya. ChaBaD
The words of these vermin trash were even harsh enough to get a surprise from lapid who’s not a friend of any religious person. Think about that for a minute. How low the state has sunk and how disgusting the people in it are. What has the left ever contributed to society besides more Abomination laws and more tattoos and piercings
How is this guy saying anything different than some of the comments on YWN do? Only they are coming from the oppisite side. But they also express the hope that “Zionist State” will be dismantled and the “Zionists” will no longer be around. How is this guy any different than them other than having been born on the opposite side?
“Every person has the right to choose how to live, certainly in terms of his religious faith, but it cannot be at the expense of society in general.”
True. That’s why the goal of the State of Israel should be: No chilonim in 50 years.
Based on the average of one child and one dog the average non religious family has they would disappear pretty quickly and that would just leave religious and Arabs. But they’ll just bring more Russians and ukrainians in every few years to keep the secular numbers up, it worked last time
I don’t understand. There are people on this chat, claiming the mantle of charaidim ledvar Hashem, and instead of davening and lamenting the intermarrige of yidden with goyim, it is celebrated that frei yiddin will dissappear? That does not bring a nachas ruach to the Rbso.
Unfortunately,there are עמלקים שבפנים Some examples that come to mind are J Street,Jewish Voice for Peace,Bernie Sanders,Chomsky,some דיינים,Neturei Karta (my opinion),some reform rabbis,etc.
rebEmes: Secular Israelis have a higher birthrate than the seculars of western countries (it’s the US with the low birthrate that has a problem), and Palestinian Israelis birthrate is not especially high. The number of secular Jews in golus is declining rapidly so absent a massive increase in “racial” (as opposed to religiously oriented) an anti-semitism, that won’t save the Israeli Zionists this time. They might encourage persecuted Christians to move in, but that would backfire since the Christians who come in would be anti-secular social conservatives. The only thing that can save the Zionist dream of a Jewish homeland free from the yoke of Torah, is directing an anti-Hareidi campaign based on the well established methods of ethnic cleansing and genocide.
RebEmes – Actually, it didn’t work. The Russian goyim have fewer kids than the Israeli Chilonim, many fled the Intifada (to Europe the sanctuary continent), and those still in Ukraine etc. prefer going to Europe for the free stuff and not worrying about more wars. They aren’t afraid of antisemitism because they aren’t Jews.
Smerel – How is this guy any different than them other than having been born on the opposite side?
Without going into the issue of Zionism per se, which isn’t necessary to answer your question. Also without going into the issue of “Chareidi Society” per se, which is equally irrelevant:
1. Remember for a moment that this discussion was sparked by him gloating about the death of two Chareidi BABIES for goodness sake. Does ANYONE in the Chareidi world rejoice when the children of non-Frum Jews die?
2. His issue is really with Judaism altogether. BG said “people who put on Tefillin”, not “Chareidim”. It just is no longer politically correct to speak that coarsely in public against religion, especially while pretending to be “the only democracy in the Middle East.” If his issue was with a particular social construct, then he could have said his “corrected version” the first time around… The backlash he received from even secular Israelis proves that even THEY understood this.
3. He may not even consider himself to be a ‘Zionist’, but rather a ‘Post Zionist’. The fact that some people who comment here don’t understand the difference is a separate parsha. That doesn’t let Zionism off the hook, because ‘Post Zionism’ is really the logical next step after secular Zionism runs its course.
4. He probably doesn’t like RZ either except possibly for the Bennet variety…
5. Last but not least. This isn’t a debate with two legitimate sides where some like it one way and some like it another way. And we don’t have to be shy about that. Fifty years from now there will be Chareidim. In a major way. If that reporter will have Jewish grandchildren fifty years from now is a bigger question. BG doesn’t have a lot of descendants, some of them are Goyim (his son married a shiksa), and some don’t even live in Israel. (From his perspective the last item is the worst.)
rebEmes, you are just disgraceful attacking the Russians who after decades of religious persecution were able to emigrate
a foolish statement, but no less foolish than the frum, including most of the comments here, who say that secular jews will soon be extinct. such proclamations, in both cases, are expressions of sin’at hinam.
This vile comment was the comment of one individual, and should be condemned – but it is still the comment of one individual, and not of the State. As to Yair Lapid’s comment – it is valid in both directions. Secular politicians should not use this tragedy to attack Chareidim as such – but Chareidi politicians have been using this tragedy to attack non-Chareidi figures at least as much. “It’s the fault of the Attorney General” and the like – despite this being a daycare center that’s been around for 30 years.
Some quiet Cheshbon haNefesh is called for by all.
an Israeli Yid
Cheshbon Hanefesh…
How about YWN pushing an update about how many kids were actuly in that specific gan (18). How many adults were supervising them (3).
How of the evacuated kids were from the LEGAL gan in the same building, or the neighbors gan?
About the serious criticisms coming out about the actual actions of the first responders.
Who exactly decided that the entire building needed to be sent to hospital.
Who entered the appartment during the event and took pictures and published them without claifying what exactly happened and why certain things were in certain places.