From the Liveblog of
Sunday, March 10, 2024
Lapid: ‘If Haredim go abroad they’ll find they have to work for a living’
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleSam Sokol is a former political correspondent at The Times of Israel. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"
Continuing his criticism of Sephardic Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef’s declaration that Haredim would “go abroad” if forcibly enlisted in the IDF, Opposition Leader Yair Lapid declares that members of the ultra-Orthodox community, many of whom do not work, would find it difficult to adjust to life outside of Israel.
“If the Haredim go abroad, they will find that the ultra-Orthodox there work for a living, not even dreaming that someone will finance them,” Lapid tells Army Radio — referring to the fact that only 55.8 percent of Haredi men in Israel work for a living.
Yeshiva students, who receive government stipends for their studies, often view integration into the secular world as a threat to their religious identity and community continuity.
Responding to Shas’s condemnation of his previous criticism of Yosef, Lapid on Sunday morning releases a statement declaring that “if 66,000 ultra-Orthodox youth enlist, the IDF will get 105 new battalions that are needed for Israel’s security.”
The Times of Israel Community.