Jewish extremist camp under fire
'Camp incitement' and the Lahava organization are under intense fire from Knesset members and other organizations who are demanding that the group and the camp be shut down and outlawed; 'We complain, and rightly so, about incitement on the Palestinian side, but incitement among us worries me even more.'
MK Erel Margalit of the Zionist Union has said he will submit an urgent application to the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee in light of the investigation and will also officially ask Minister of Education, Naftali Bennett, to close the camp.
"These are subversive activities, funded and organized to undermine the rule of law and the government. It seems the organizers of the camp see nothing wrong with what they're doing while promoting messages of incitement, hate, rebellion and racism. All this under the watchful eye of the Ministry of Education and the minister himself. Any sensible person sees that Jewish terror is growing there," said Margalit.
MK Itzik Shmuli, also of the Zionist Union, and chairman of the lobby against "price tag" attacks, responded angrily, saying "this clandestine activity is extremely disturbing and extremely dangerous. Let no one be confused, this isn't just some camp handing out chocolate milk and snacks. These are activities that are furthering an extremely radical, racist and nationalistic organization that incites and persecutes minorities and anyone that doesn't agree with them."
MK and Maj. Gen. (res.) Eyal Ben-Reuven said, "We complain, and rightly so, about incitement on the Palestinian side, but incitement among us worries me even more."
There is also anger from outside the political system, with many organizations already calling on authorities to outlaw Lehava. The Reform Movement Center sent a letter to the attorney general and state prosecutor demanding to investigate the organization and label it as a terrorist organization.
The Lahava organization's founder, Ben-Zion Gopstein, claimed that the activities at the camp are not breaking the law. "My son serves in the army and so does Noam Federman's son. We love the IDF, but we are opposed to the violent interrogations of the Shin Bet. The point of the camp is to teach kids to love the country. I would advise members of the left that before sending letters and demanding that we be outlawed, start working against the Islamic movement and their camps."
