A religious soldier prays
A religious soldier praysFlash 90

Education Minister and Jewish Home Chairman Naftali Bennett alleged that the '"radical left" has been running a "well-coordinated campaign" that aims to demonize religious Jews.

Writing in the Religious Zionist weekly Olam Katan, Bennett said that the campaign targeting 'Religionization', or 'Hadatah' in Hebrew, aims to turn Israelis against the Jewish tradition.

"In recent years, an anti-religious campaign has been orchestrated and orchestrated, led by radical left-wing elements whose goal is to create a frightening image for the general public," wrote Bennett.

"This is a clear political attack against me, against the Jewish Home party as representatives of the public, against the Eli pre-military academy and against any mention of Judaism in the education system and in the IDF. "

Bennett added that the proper response to the campaign should be to strengthen the public's knowledge of Judaism.

"The campaign, despite its unpleasantness, does [not make me give up," continued Bennett. "On the contrary, I only understand how vital it is to continue our path, and it only strengthens me to continue to work so that every child in the education system will recognize the tradition of Israel. They will recognize Kiddush, holidays, Zionism and the Bible."

Over the past year, numerous stories have surfaced in the media concerning alleged cases of increasing religious coercion in Israel. Led by the radical Secular Forum, the stories have targeted courses in Jewish history and tradition in the school system, the influence of the IDF's military rabbinate, and popular Lag Baomer events given by Chabad at malls all across Israel.

Many of the stories have focused on the IDF, as the number of religious soldiers and officers continues to climb. In early July, Haaretz published a story last week contending that religious IDF officers were preventing secular families from Shabbat visits at training bases. A week before that, Ynet ran a story highlighting the plight of a military cook who was punished after preparing food on Shabbat, which is contrary to regulations.