Dr. Hagi Ben-Artzi, a lecturer at Bar-Ilan University and brother-in-law of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, is calling for "national soul-searching" related to the drought Israel is experiencing.
Interviewed by Arutz Sheva, ahead of Thursday's prayer assembly at the Western Wall of the Temple in Jerusalem, Dr. Ben-Artzi said, "I ask myself what happened five or six years ago, which apparently caused great anger in the sky. A great scandal and a collective sin of all the people of Israel - the release of the terrorists in the Schalit deal," referring to the release of more than a thousand security prisoners for Gilad Schalit, who had been abducted by Hamas. Ben Artzi cited all the people, including the prime minister, military leaders, rabbis and others who supported the deal, saying they have to repent and make sure history is not repeated.