Jewish Home Chairman Rabbi Rafi Peretz spoke to Arutz Sheva about the upcoming elections, the technical bloc with Otzma Yehudit, and the effort to win the religious Zionist vote.
"The Kahanists were outlawed," Rabbi Peretz said. "Those who went with them, if they were outlawed, were not with us. If they were anti-Zionist or contemptuous of IDF soldiers, they would not be with us. If they said that Arab blood is free and that they can be killed without trial, they were not with us. I checked these things in depth."
He said that the technical bloc with Otzma Yehudit was necessary to prevent the expulsion of Jews from their homes. "We are from different schools of study, but we have to make a decision and make a national decision whether the Land of Israel will be sold to Trump just because of 100,000 votes. I have been deported and I have compassion for thousands of Jews who have gone through it."
Rabbi Peretz also stood firm on the suspicions against Prime Minister Netanyahu. "My worldview says that we examine the Torah and it helps us examine how we look at life, and the Torah says that someone who has not yet been charged is entitled [to the presumption of innocence]. I saw my colleague Ya'akov Ne'eman - who was indicted two and a half years later he emerged vindicated and clean."
He also said that the Blue and White party, even if it is the largest following the elections, will not persuade his party to take part in its coalition. "I know and respect Benny Gantz, and I told him, 'Benny, we will continue to be good friends, but we are on both sides of the barricade - I am on the right side and you are on the left side."
"Our intention is to be senior partners alongside the prime minister. Without confusion, we want the right-wing government not to be for our private whims, but because this is our national responsibility for the Land of Israel and for this people and for the building of future generations. The aspiration of all of us is to be significant in the battlefield - and in my opinion, education," he said.