United Torah Judaism: We will support Netanyahu even in new elections
"We are talking about elections that are completely unnecessary," Deputy Minister of Health Rabbi Ya'acov Litzman and Chairman of Finance Committee Rabbi Moshe Gafni wrote.
By ROSSELLA TERCATINIsrael's Deputy Health Minister, Yaakov Litzman (C) from United Torah Judaism party attends a meeting at the Knesset, Israel's parliament, in Jerusalem September 13, 2017.(photo credit: REUTERS)
The ultra-Orthodox party United Torah Judaism (UTJ) announced that it would recommend President Reuven Rivlin appoint Benjamin Netanyahu as the new prime minister even after new elections.In a letter that will be published in the haredi (ultra-Orthodox) newspapers on Wednesday, the party leaders also announced that the two factions that make up the list - Agudath Israel and Degel Hatorah – will run again together, maintaining the current agreement. "We are talking about elections that are completely unnecessary," wrote Deputy Minister of Health Rabbi Ya'acov Litzman and Chairman of the Finance Committee Rabbi Moshe Gafni.They added that the agreement between Agudat Yisrael and Degel Hatorah that brought UTJ to success in the last election will be maintained "even if we are forced to go back to the polls due to Avigdor Liberman's obstinacy and his political motives against Prime Minister Netanyahu, and due to his cynical use of the so-called conscription bill."Yahadut Hatorah has eight seats in the current Knesset.The five mandates that Liberman's Yisrael Beytenu won are crucial to allow Benjamin Netanyahu to put together the 65-mandate coalition that the appointed prime minister is expected to form. However, Liberman maintains that his party will not join the government if the conscription bill is not passed in its current form.The haredi parties oppose the current conscription bill.
