Following the public uproar and political turmoil that erupted following his remarks against religious Zionist IDF soldiers, haredi spiritual leader Rabbi Dov Lando has published a clarification.
"During the yeshiva intersession break, you may encounter people whose way of life differs from ours. You must be careful to avoid engaging in ideological arguments with them. Our worldview is clear to us through the teachings of our revered sages, from whose wisdom we draw. In particular, one must be especially careful not to argue with people who, under the banner of their beliefs, persecute the Torah and those who study it, and who are incapable of understanding or appreciating our outlook, which was the outlook of our great rabbis, including the Avraham Yeshaya Karelitz and Yitzchok Zev Soloveitchik, of blessed memory," Rabbi Lando stated.
He added that his words were completely distorted. "As was proven over the past day, when remarks I made in a private conversation were published, and through ignorant hatred, they approached the remarks in a distorted manner and a lack of understanding."
Rabbi Lando's statement follows the publication of a recording from a private conversation in which he is heard saying, "Will it not be so? The decrees come from another source. There are wicked people here - what can be done? There are wicked people, including those who wear knitted kippot. I am referring to those Religious Zionists who insist that people must enlist. I would ask them, according to their own way of thinking - though they have no consistent position at all - if the state sends people, soldiers, for the sake of the country’s honor, and they are killed, is that also permissible? That is outright murder. Therefore, they are inciting murder - that is what they are doing."
The recorded remarks drew widespread condemnation, including from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who defended the religious Zionist soldiers, saying: “I strongly reject the shocking statements made against IDF soldiers from the Religious Zionist community. IDF soldiers - religious, secular, and haredi - leave their homes, their jobs, and their families, and risk their lives to defend the State of Israel, its citizens, and the entire Jewish people. They deserve profound appreciation, gratitude, and full support from every segment of the public, and certainly also from the Torah world."