A leading issue on the table in negotiations between the Kadima-led coalition and UTJ is the latter's demands for increased state funding for child welfare and for hareidi-religious educational institutions.
Sources close to UTJ MK Yaakov Litzman told Arutz Sheva Radio that he is prepared for UTJ remain in the opposition, as his seat as chairman of the Knesset Finance Committee is guaranteed. The sources also said that Litzman has received support for his position from unnamed Hassidic rebbes and from other rabbinical figures.
In an interview with the hareidi publication HaMachaneh HaHareidi UTJ MK Meir Porush expressed optimism regarding the possibility of his party joining the government. In the same newspaper, a senior Kadima source is quoted as saying that the government needs UTJ in order to survive.
For this reason, some religious groups oppose the intention to have UTJ join the coalition. Rabbi Shalom Dov-Ber HaLevi Wolpe, of the world headquarters of SOS Israel, wrote to MK Porush asking him "at the last minute, to do all in your power so that United Torah Judaism not be a partner in this government." SOS Israel is a Chabad-affiliated organization dedicated to preserving the integrity Jewish control in the land of Israel.
Rabbi Wolpe wrote,
"If you continue to be a party to these negotiations and to this partnership, you will regret it very soon with all your heart; and I faithfully promise you, in my name and in the name of my colleagues, that the Chabad Chassidim will make sure that the regret is deep and internal. On the other hand, if you display spiritual strength and fight against entry into the government, then you will earn many more years to serve the people of Israel...."
The letter further said,
"Your entry into the coalition now has one and only one outcome: the continuation of Agudat Yisrael's partnership in the destruction and abandonment of the entire Land of Israel to the enemy's hands, the expulsion of thousands of families from their homes and bringing about life-threatening danger for millions of Jews."
Sources close to UTJ MK Yaakov Litzman told Arutz Sheva Radio that he is prepared for UTJ remain in the opposition, as his seat as chairman of the Knesset Finance Committee is guaranteed. The sources also said that Litzman has received support for his position from unnamed Hassidic rebbes and from other rabbinical figures.
In an interview with the hareidi publication HaMachaneh HaHareidi UTJ MK Meir Porush expressed optimism regarding the possibility of his party joining the government. In the same newspaper, a senior Kadima source is quoted as saying that the government needs UTJ in order to survive.
For this reason, some religious groups oppose the intention to have UTJ join the coalition. Rabbi Shalom Dov-Ber HaLevi Wolpe, of the world headquarters of SOS Israel, wrote to MK Porush asking him "at the last minute, to do all in your power so that United Torah Judaism not be a partner in this government." SOS Israel is a Chabad-affiliated organization dedicated to preserving the integrity Jewish control in the land of Israel.
Rabbi Wolpe wrote,
"If you continue to be a party to these negotiations and to this partnership, you will regret it very soon with all your heart; and I faithfully promise you, in my name and in the name of my colleagues, that the Chabad Chassidim will make sure that the regret is deep and internal. On the other hand, if you display spiritual strength and fight against entry into the government, then you will earn many more years to serve the people of Israel...."
The letter further said,
"Your entry into the coalition now has one and only one outcome: the continuation of Agudat Yisrael's partnership in the destruction and abandonment of the entire Land of Israel to the enemy's hands, the expulsion of thousands of families from their homes and bringing about life-threatening danger for millions of Jews."