In her endless pursuit to persecute lomdei Torah, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara made another dramatic move this week, ordering officials to halt the “Target Price” (discounted housing) lottery, citing a “legal impediment” stemming from a High Court ruling on the draft issue, The Marker reported.
The lottery, which includes approximately 8,000 housing units, was halted at the last moment—on the very morning it was set to open. The delay came amid ministers’ push to significantly increase the share of IDF reservists eligible for top priority.
Indeed, at a meeting of the Israel Land Council earlier this week, a dramatic decision was made to raise the allocation for reservists to 50%.
At the heart of the current dispute is the Council’s decision to exclude the Chareidi sector from this requirement. It was determined that in predominantly Chareidi cities and neighborhoods, the 50% quota for reservists would not apply, in order to allow young Chareidi couples—most of whom do not serve in the reserves—to compete for housing.
Baharav-Miara threw a fit at this decision, claiming that it is “problematic and lacks legal justification.” She claimed that it is not permissible to exempt an entire population from benefits designated for those who serve, especially in light of the High Court ruling prohibiting benefits and funding for individuals defined as “draft evaders.” As a result, all lotteries have been frozen pending clarification of the legal status of the decision, leaving thousands of families in limbo.
This is yet another of Baharav-Miara’s schemes to twist the law to persecute lomdei Torah and their families. After implementing cuts to yeshiva funding, revoking daycare, after-school program, municipal tax, and public transportation subsidies, she is attempting to push avreichim and young couples out of the subsidized housing market as well. And in her latest move, she has “determined” that tax benefits for donors who contribute to yeshivos and Torah mosdos at which draft-eligible students are enrolled should be revoked.
Chareidi political sources stated: “The legal advisory system has become a weapon against the Torah world. It is unfathomable that young couples without a roof over their heads are punished simply for preserving Jewish tradition. This is deliberate harassment aimed at applying cruel economic pressure on an entire population through its most basic need—housing.”
At this stage, it remains unclear when the lottery will resume, as the High Court’s demand for full equality in the allocation of state housing resources looms in the background.
(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)
Join the official YWN WhatsApp status
19 Responses
Just to be clear, Haredim who are not draft dodgers and who serve in the IDF would be eligible for the subsidized housing lottery. Only those who did not serve would be ineligible.
This is what has me very, very confused: we are bombarded constantly, from every rabbi, every clip, everywhere you go, every pamphlet, every silly song, with the message to love every jew. UNIVERSALLY. NO EXCEPTIONS. NO MATTER WHAT. Almost to a degree of worship. Recently I saw in a pamphlet by the title “the nekuda tova” and I’m quoting verbatim “to see every Jew, even the lowest of the lowest, as if he or she were Moshe Rabbenu”. This includes someone, let’s say, any Jew who gives no value to limud HaTorah, someone who sees Torah learning as a waste of time, someone who would rather want people to be “productive” and “contribute”. This lady is following the natural consequences of her ideology, and she is certainly not the only one, but probably part of a vast majority. So what do we want? If she is evil, then what about everyone that has the same ideology? They are not evil?
Isn’t there a way to get rid of this מכשפה once and for all with a פולסא דנורא ?
She needs to be deported to Gaza. Wicked witch.
There is no end to the rishus of attorney general Gali Baharav-Miara SR”Y but in fairness this decision does make sense. There is no reason why in predominantly Chareidi cities and neighborhoods, the 50% quota for reservists should not apply. No one in the US who didn’t serve would think of complaining about why they don’t get housing benefits under the GI bill.
1. Nobody owes you anything.
2. שֵֽׁשֶׁת יָמִים תַּעֲבֹד
so, non-serving community is asking to take away housing from reservists and give it to non-serving? and questioning that is “persecution”? and it is all not about taking something from you but about _subsidies_. Sheli Sheli beshelcha sheli?!
Yups she’s rising higher and higher with her hatred towards pro Torah… her fall will be worse than Sharon’s.
I object to @smerel and @nbednarsh using logic rather than hysteria in their reaction to this story.
How can one possibly think that an Attorney General’s job is to apply her country’s laws, as written, equally to all — even if haredi draft dodgers will thereby lose benefits not available to any other citizen?
This is the sitra achra there’s literally no other explanation to the evilness against Hashem and the Jewish people coming from this swine
Sickofidiots- even the simplest learning of Jewish law teaches you that that hashkafa is not only completely off, but also rishus to even teach people such a thing. If someone spits at your father do you make that person your best friend? The people who trample on the Torah, the people making Abomination parades, the people desecrating the Shabbos, the people causing our rabbis to cry and starve, you’re going to turn around and hug them? I can’t think of a bigger disrespect to God than to love these people.
apdsvys, there is no such thing as פולסא דנורא. It was made up by a political activist in the 1930s or thereabouts, and there are no documented examples of it ever being used. Every “known” case has turned out to be a hoax.
“It is unfathomable that young couples without a roof over their heads are punished simply for preserving Jewish tradition.”
This is such garbage.
1) ‘Young couples without a roof over their head’ are welcome to rent an apartment. This is a subsidizes housing lottery not a homeless shelter.
2) They are not being ‘punished for preserving Jewish tradition’. They are simply not eligible for huge government subsidies if they exclude themselves from serving the country.
3) Noone has a ‘right’ to purchase a home at a discounted price. It is a privilege. If you want a home and don’t meet the criteria for a discount, pay full price.
@sick..; NO, it does NOT include those who deliberately harm Torah, Judaism and Torah true people – it ONLY refers to those who did not receive the education to understand the values of Torah and Mitzvos and therefore unfortunately on their own don’t keep them.
She is a Reshante by every standard; Jewish, and lehavdil legal and political. In no other so called democratic and legal country in the world, such persecution of 1.2m strong minority would be tolerated. In no other democratic country, parliamentarians, politicians and the general public would remain silent to such persecution!
To sick
Your question is a good one. It depends on whom you oppose. For example fighting certain Zionist leadership who hate religious Jews is ok to hate and pray for their destruction. However the average secular israeli today is a tinok shenishba as he never had a Jewish education. Same in America. Most secular Jews have not been raised Jewish LY. But let’s say reform leadership we must fight.
nbednarsh: there is no such thing as “Haredim who are not draft dodgers and who serve in the IDF”. All haredim are “draft dodgers”, by definition, because a haredi is someone who follows haredi gedolim, and all gedolim in unity say that no bachur, even if he doesn’t learn, is allowed to enlist.
sickofidiots: So you noticed that. Good. The “everyone is good and holy and there is no such thing as wicked” is foreign to Judaism and we need to root it out. It’s insanity.
Ari: Your first point is not true. The government is required not to persecute religious minorities.
The reform sefer torah says exactly the same words so where is the “shenishba” there. It’s a choice
Why (non) truth2power is she thus okay to revoke tax credits given by donors to yeshivos? She hates the Torah and everything related to it.
ישראל ואורייתא וקודשא בריך הוא חד הוא
She hates all three with venomous vitriolic hate.
doom777: You are putting words in my mouth.
I said “nobody owes you anything” in the context of subsidized benefits, not basic rights. I would never in a million years argue that the Israeli government—or any government—has license to trample minority rights. Of course, a government is obligated to protect minorities. That is not even up for discussion.
But you are conflating two completely different things:
civil rights / protection from persecution, and
eligibility for discretionary subsidies
Those are not the same, and pretending they are is where your argument falls apart.
On top of that, your definition of “Haredi” is circular—you define it in a way that guarantees your conclusion and then present that as reality. And then you shift frameworks: first it’s strict eligibility and obligation, then suddenly it’s minority protections—without reconciling the two.
Pick a framework and argue it consistently. Right now, you are just moving the goalposts.