On Monday, former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited a synagogue in Rehovot where he met with members of the Religious-Zionist community. Former Yamina MK Idit Silman and Likud party candidate Moshe Saada were also present.
According to reports of the visit published in IsraelHayom, Netanyahu appealed to the Religous-Zionist community to vote Likud, saying, "I'd like to tell you a few things you may not know. A quarter of Likud belongs to the Religious-Zionist community. I don't see any difference.
"I taught my son Avner the weekly parshah [Torah portion] until he was 12 years old," Netanyahu added. "From that point onward, he taught me. I'm not afraid to admit that I come from a religious home or an observant home and that we respect Jewish tradition, and I'm not just saying that. When elections are on the horizon and we go to the Kotel Hama'aravi [Western Wall], it's not just for show. It's for real. It's part of the way we were brought up. Religious-Zionism has a home in the Likud party - the Likud is Religious-Zionism's home. Of course anyone is free to establish a sectoral party but there's absolutely no need," he added.
Netanyahu then promised to budget for all the educational needs of the Religious-Zionist educational system. "I know that for Religious Zionism, the most important thing is education and that you invest a great deal in this area. I never understood why in the past, your parties didn't insist on something so basic - including a budgetary allowance for educational needs in the national budget. But I tell you now that this is something we will do."
Among the questions posed to Netanyahu at the meeting was one regarding the judiciary and the need to reform it. "We will do what needs to be done with a great deal of forethought and responsibility," he said. "There are several areas where changes need to be made, and the areas that need fixing are ones that affect thousands of Israelis. Look for example at the decision to disqualify [MK Amichai] Chikli - does it make sense? Then Ahmad Tibi comes along and says that Hamas is not a terrorist organization and they decide that Chikli is the person to disqualify - does that make sense to you? There's a lot that we need to fix there. We don't want to destroy the judiciary - we want to rescue it."