Brig.-Gen. (res.) Ofer Winter, chairman of the People of Israel party, launched a strong rebuke on Monday against Yitzhak Goldknopf, head of United Torah Judaism’s haredi (ultra-Orthodox) faction, Agudat Yisrael. The confrontation followed Goldknopf’s statement that his party would demand a full military draft exemption for every yeshiva student.
“Not everyone who wears black and white studies Torah,” Winter, who comes from a national religious background, stated bluntly.
“There will be no government without regulating the status of those who serve. Our commitment to them is paramount,” he added.
Winter also called for Goldknopf to stop “deceiving the public,” arguing that the current system harms genuine Torah students above all others.
“What was – will not be,” he concluded.
Earlier on Monday, Winter submitted his party’s slate to the Knesset alongside other political parties ahead of the October elections.
The decision to run independently also appeared to defy Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has been urging small right-wing parties to merge in order to avoid losing votes to the electoral threshold.
Keshet Neev and Tobias Holcman contributed to this report.
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