Otzma candidate refuses 'Baruch Goldstein ultimatum'

Attorney Itamar Ben-Gvir, one of the leaders of the Otzma Yehudit party, responded Thursday evening to Rabbi Yaakov Meidan's statement that he would accept a joint run between the Jewish Home and Otzma Yehudit – but only if Ben-Gvir removes a picture of Baruch Goldstein from his private residence.

According to Ben-Gvir, "It is amazing that Rabbi Meidan, who is known for his pluralism and his approach to containing various groups such as Shabbat desecrators, people who eat non-Kosher food, and even participants in the Gay Pride parade, but he feels he must enter the living room of the Ben-Gvir family."

"The picture of Dr. Goldstein is in my house, since Dr. Goldstein saved dozens of Jews from Kiryat Arba and Hevron and was a doctor who leapt from one attack to another and saved many lives.

Ben-Gvir emphasized that "I do not support the killing of Arabs because they are Arabs and I educate my children to love Israel, but at the same time I do not support the blocking of mouths and the prevention of freedom of expression. Rabbi Meidan did not examine the pictures in Naftali Bennett's living room, the length of Ayelet Shaked's skirt, and to the best of my knowledge, did not prepare a committee for acceptance to candidates in the Jewish Home."

Ben-Gvir also noted, "It is important to remember that there is a technical connection that does not deal with the identity and uniformity of opinion. It is in fact the person who signed the Gavison-Meidan Covenant and includes secular left-wing extremists that is expected to include opinions from the right-wing side as well."