Court hears appeal on ‘Torat Hamelech’ book

A three-justice panel at the High Court of Justice heard a petition by several organizations against a decision by Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein not to indict the authors of the pamphlet “Torat Hamelech.”

The text discusses the circumstances in which Jews would be allowed by Jewish law to kill gentiles, based on a selective reading of Jewish texts. It became a controversy immediately upon publication as many saw it as justifying violence against Palestinians and Arabs.

After Weinstein decided not to indict the authors of the booklet, several groups, including The Reform Judaism Center, appealed against the decision. The state claims there was not enough evidence tying the book’s teachings with cases of violence against Arabs. The appellants claimed Weinstein’s reasoning was not sound and the High Court should intervene.

During the discussion, Justice Salim Joubran, who is an Israeli Arab, asked “Does the text of Torat Hamelech also pertain to me? Do I, as a gentile, have to be killed?” According to the Haaretz daily, Joubran said “the book gives a false image of Judaism, a more correct picture must be given.”

At the end of the discussion, the justices sided with the state, saying it was not possible to prove a connection between the book and actual acts of violence. The authors were not indicted.