Emmanuel Case handed over to a Beit Din

Israeli secular papers and their anti - haredi headlines last Thursday. 

 Photo: Miriam Woelke

B"H

Last night, Sephardi Rabbi Yoav Lalom signed an agreement with the Chassidut Slonim saying that Lalom has to cancel his complaint to the secular Israeli Supreme Court and hand over the entire case concerning the Beit Yaakov Girl's School in Emmanuel to the Beit Din of Rabbi Avraham Levin (a close follower of the Litvishe Rabbi Yosef Shalom Eliyashiv).

The haredi radio channel "Radio Kol Chai" was very happy to report about the agreement last night and immediately interviewed the head of the Sephardi SHASS party (and coalition partner of the present Netanyahu government). The Minister of the Interior Eli Yishai said that he had seen Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef crying yesterday. Crying because a secular court was handling a religious matter. Instead, Lalom should have gone to a Beit Din (Rabbinical Court)  from the beginning.

The Supreme Court still has to decide about the Slonimer Chassidim who are still imprisoned because they ignored the court's verdict. However, haredi society is quite happy that the Emmanuel case is in their hands now although the Levin Beit Din has already announced that the separation between Ashkenazi and Sephardi girls may be rassism. In the meantime, Chassidut Slonim is thinking about turning their own Beit Yaakov into an independent institution; independent  from any government funds just like Dushinsky, Toldot Aharon or further Edah HaCharedit groups, as then any governmental interference would stop.

Remark: The people very much involved in finding a compromise both sides can accept: The Knesset members Porush and Moses (Chassidut Vishnitz) from the Yahadut HaTorah Party.  

Photo and Article: Kikar Shabbat

Hate graffitis on a wall outside the Chabad Synagogue in Rishon LeZion. "Go back to Poland", "Ashkenazi Animals" - it says on the graffiti.

Actually Chabad is not from Poland but from Lithuania; furthermore, it is Chabad accepting anyone into their institutions. No matter if Sephardi or Ashkenazi. 

Secular newspaper reports as well as the Supreme Court's decision have caused a new wave of hatred between Sepharadim and Ashkenazim. Accorind to my personal experience more on the Sephardi side towards the Ashkenazim, as I have heard several negative remarks. One against myself and I definitely don't look as if I belong to the Slonim.

The Israeli press (including the haredi press) is asking where SHASS was in this case. Most SHASS Knesset members kept quiet and one answer may be (according to the secular media) that Eli Yishai as well as Knesset member Ariyeh Attias are sending their children to Ashkenazi schools and thus were afraid to speak up.

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I cannot believe the agreement (if there ever was any) failed. Now the entire case goes on and on. 

Last night, two haredi radio channels reported happily about the agreement between Lalom and a Beit Din. Secular Israeli papers explained the legal situation in their editions this morning and now nothing is valid anymore.

Details: 

Kikar Shabbat in Hebrew

and 

Yeshiva World in English

So, who is behind Lalom and why don't the Slonim just stop accepting education money from the government ? If they can afford doing so.