MK Moshe Gafni (United Torah Judaism) launched a harsh attack on Wednesday against the Religious Zionist Party and Minister of Aliyah and Integration Ofir Sofer, who participated in a march calling for the conscription of haredim in the IDF.
Addressing the yearly conference of the Yeshiva Student Union in Ashkelon, Gafni described the coalition's conduct: "We face a nearly impossible reality.
"Our partners are secular, Torah study isn't at the forefront of their minds, and that's at best. At worst, they oppose it."
He continued: "There are the Mizrachists (religious Zionists) who are our partners, and they have this minister, Ofir Sofer, who is participating today in a march against Torah learners."
Gafni then took his attack a step further: "He's a minister thanks to us. Ungrateful. We raised this government, we raised them up to the position of minister, and they work against us; it's terrible."
He added: "I said on the floor of the Knesset: 'The people of Israel have no right to exist with Torah study. In all the exiles for thousands of years, there were Torah learners, and they are the ones who kept the people of Israel unified. Thanks to those who studied the Torah, we came to the land of Israel."
Further on in his address, he explained why the haredi parties did not topple the government by opposing the budget. "We could have toppled the government, the state didn't have a budget, not only would the war have been harmed, the haredi public would have been harmed. But from now on, us voting with the coalition won't be a given. The behavior toward us is terrible."
Knesset Deputy Speaker Moshe Solomon (Religious Zionists) responded to Gafni's remarks: "Minister Sofer is ungrateful? Is the public that fights and sacrifices its life for the State of Israel ungrateful? The ingratitude is that of the sector that doesn't report for Israel's war against its enemy and complains about those who protest it. I also marched in this important march with great pride. We will die if we don't enlist."