Government office for Jewish culture strips funding from Shavuot event over Arab headliner

The Jewish culture division of far-right lawmaker Orit Strock’s Settlements Ministry has walked back on its agreement to help fund a Shavuot holiday event that took place last year because the headline speaker — Arab Israeli journalist Lucy Aharish — is not Jewish, the Ynet news site reports.

The government office is tasked with funding such holiday events around the country and agreed to do so for the Megiddo Regional Council. In a letter uncovered by Ynet, the office says it wasn’t aware that Aharish was the headliner when it agreed to fund the event and argues that an office promoting Jewish culture cannot promote a woman who “represents mixed marriages.” Aharish is married to Jewish Israeli actor Tzachi Halevi.

The Megiddo Regional Council blasts the decision to strip it of NIS 15,000 ($4,000) in funding after the fact, arguing that Aharish discussed Jewish issues at an event marking a Jewish holiday and that such dismissal of her identity by the Jewish culture office goes against the values of Judaism.