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Posted Thursday, November 4, 2004

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The bill which is in an advanced stage will vastly extend Israeli legal jurisdiction. The bill calls for any Holocaust denier to be tried in Israel.

Ha'aretz

Jerusalem, Thursday, November 4, 2004


The long arms of Rabbi Elyashiv and of the Knesset

By Shahar Ilan

THE founder of Degel Hatorah, Rabbi Eliezer Menachem Shach, the third anniversary of whose death is marked this week, scrupulously respected the American Diaspora. When he explained his position, according to which territorial concessions should be made to save Jewish lives, he noted that "without the help of the United States, we would not be able to survive even one month on our own, and all those who speak so arrogantly, that we, we, we will be victorious, are despised by the Lord."

Against this background it was more than surprising when Shach's successor, Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, last week voiced the opinion that "it seems Bush is a friend of Israel and [American Jews] should vote for him." The man who asked the rabbi was David Morgenstern, a Bush activist in Israel. This is not just any foreign intervention in the American presidential elections. In these elections, many Haredi ultra-Orthodox Jews who live in Israel and have American citizenship will be voting for the first time. Some of them are voting in crucial states. The possibility that the votes of these Haredim will tip the scales would certainly have deterred Shach from intervening. A source who is very familiar with Shach's attitude said yesterday that Elyashiv's statement "seems to contradict everything Shach taught."

Prof. Menahem Friedman, a researcher of the Haredi population, said Elyashiv's order attests to "a feeling of security and power that stems from the Haredim being citizens of a sovereign state. They feel the Zionist state has redeemed them. They no longer feel they have to be so cautious about not annoying the gentiles."

Friedman says Elyashiv's statement is evidence of, among other things, the tough leadership crisis in Haredi Jewry in the U.S., which required guidance from the outside.

A source close to Elyashiv responded that "it is not an order, but rather a suggestion." The source said there is no fear the statement will cause anti-Semitism, as Elyashiv voiced support for the Republican candidate, while most American Jews vote for the Democrats. The fact that this is no simple matter is also evident in the response by Knesset member Moshe Gafni (United Torah Judaism). "I have no idea," said Gafni. "I haven't delved into it."

Grasping leadership

When Shach died, it seemed Elyashiv would be a leader for a transition period. Until then he had hardly published his writings or been involved in public matters. While Shach was known for his scathing speeches, Elyashiv abstained from addressing large gatherings. As time goes by, however, Elyashiv is assuming a position as a real leader of the Haredi public. He still does not speak publicly and apparently will not do so, but in recent weeks he published a whole series of writings and instructions.

Elyashiv decided to vote against the disengagement plan. He leads the opposition to the implementation of the Education Ministry's core curriculum in Haredi boys' elementary schools. He published an order to fight the paving of a road in Acre through an old cemetery. He asked Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger (who was elected only thanks to Elyashiv's support) to make sure the signs stating that halakha (Jewish law) forbids Jews from ascending the Temple Mount were placed at the entrances to the mount. He even interfered in the composition of the rabbinical court panel for She'erit Yisrael kashrut certification.

click for origin

David Irving comments:

WHAT the Israelis do with their own criminal law is a matter of supreme indifference to us normal folks.
   Let us just use this occasion to recall that Prof Richard "Skunky" Evans (right), called upon (and paid a quarter of a million dollars by Lipstadt, et al.) to define A Holocaust Denier, gave these four criteria: a denier was somebody who said the figures were exaggerated and sought to reduce them; somebody who said that Hitler did not give the order; somebody who inclined to equate the killing of the Jews with the Allied saturation bombing of civilians in WW2; and somebody who argued that the homicidal gas chambers did not exist.
   Criteria almost tailor-made for the Lipstadt Trial, a cynic might remark.
   I asked "Skunky" in cross-examination if meeting one such criterion was sufficient to be branded a "denier" for life, or did it have to be all four of the above?
   He panicked, as he hadn't thought that one through.
   Because, I continued, handing him two photos -- before and after -- of the memorial at Auschwitz, one reading 4 million, the 1.5 million (and both surely exaggerated anyway), that meant that museum chief Franciszek Piper was a "denier."
   Given the subservience of the judges, and the state of the legal system and justice-ministries in many countries and provinces, for example in Ontario, Canada, where the bench is predominantly occupied by their fellows, it hardly seems necessary for Israel to pass such a weird domestic law as is contemplated in this article.

Whereas at first it appeared that Elyashiv would share the political leadership of Degel Hatorah with Rabbi Aharon Leib Steinman, Elyashiv has recently established himself as the sole leader. Steinman deals mainly with educational leadership. Elyashiv is also moving in on the heads of Agudat Yisrael, all of whom are revered leaders of Hassidic sects. They all seem to be busy with the matters of their own communities, and do not often become involved in matters of the whole Haredi public.

Shouting 'Gevalt!'

Israeli law allows people to be tried in Israel for several types of crimes committed beyond its borders -- Nazis and their cohorts, for example, terrorists who harmed Israelis or Jews, or Israelis who broke the law abroad. There is now doubt, however, that the passing of the bill initiated by MK Arieh Eldad (National Union) and which is in an advanced stage -- being prepared for second and third readings in the Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee -- will vastly extend Israeli legal jurisdiction. The bill calls for any Holocaust denier to be tried in Israel.

In most countries in the world there is no prohibition on denying the Holocaust. One of Eldad's reasons for submitting the bill was effectively to create a deterrent for the citizens of those countries too.

"What I want is that if a Holocaust denier publishes a book in England, he will be considered a criminal in Israel," explained Eldad to a meeting of the committee. He clarified that even if no one is tried, it will be sufficient that deniers know they cannot come to Israel.

It is reasonable to assume Eldad's bill would not have reached such an advanced stage were it not for staunch support from Holocaust survivor Justice Minister Tommy Lapid. The ministerial committee on legislation, which Lapid heads, decided to support the bill and thus granted it coalition support. Lapid told Haaretz that he feels denying the Holocaust

"is a clearly neo-Nazi crime. Anyone involved in this belongs to the group of criminals whom our arm must reach anywhere in the world. This is essential even if the law remains declarative. We will not hunt them, but they should know that they are on our list of criminals. I am very satisfied and happy that this will be entering our law books."

The bill is actually quite controversial. During the debate on the bill's first reading in the Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee, Justice Ministry representative Tamar Bornstein explained that the bill is "symbolic more than practical. If the act does not constitute a crime in the country in which it is committed, that country will not extradite one of its citizens [to Israel]. If the act is a crime, I assume the country would want to try the criminal itself."

Attorney Eyal Zandberg, the committee's deputy legal adviser, said the bill is "problematic," and proposed that the ministerial committee on legislation reconsider it.

Prof. Shneur Zalman Feller, who was awarded the Israel Prize for Law and is considered the country's senior criminal jurist, displayed callous contempt for the bill during the meeting. Feller opposes using criminal law against Holocaust denial even in Israel. "Will criminal measures force people to remember?" he asked. "How is this the role of criminal law?"

"Do you want to shut the mouths of the whole world?" Feller asked Eldad, regarding the extensive application of the law. Feller said the passing of the law would be nothing more than a cry of 'Gevalt!'"

Committee chairman Michael Eitan (Likud) said caution must be exercised against zealousness, making the subject itself ridiculous.

"I feel a bit uncomfortable with this," said Eitan, "because I do not believe this law will be useful forever."

This, however, did not prevent him from announcing that he would promote the bill within three weeks, "unless the Foreign Ministry has second thoughts on the matter."

The Lipstadt trial

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