AG considers indicting King's Torah author
Pending the findings in a hearing for Rabbi Yosef Elitzur for articles that allegedly incite to violence against Arabs, Avichai Mandelblit may indict him.
Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit announced to the Supreme Court on Monday that he will consider submitting an indictment against Rabbi Yosef Elitzur for alleged incitement to violence against Arabs, pending a hearing.
The Reform Movement and Tag Meir filed a petition that claiming that two articles that Elitzur penned in 2013 incited to violence and racism against Arabs, which led to Mandelblit's announcement. Elitzur was a co-author of the King's Torah, a book that claims that in certain situations is permissible to kill gentiles, for which he was investigated for the same charges.
The hearing will take place in the Center District Prosecutor's office, and their recommendation will be presented to the Attorney General for his decision.
The state announced that it has closed the cases regarding two additional articles written by the rabbi.
According to the evidence of the case, Elitzur was working as the rabbi and teacher at the Od Yosef Chai Yeshiva in Yitzhar, where he taught many of the children living in the area. He had a weekly opinion column on the Kol Hayehudi website.
On May 1, 2013, a day after the murder of Yitzhar resident Avitar Borovski at Tapuah Junction, Elitzur published an opinion piece entitled Never Give Up—Only Grow!
He wrote, "There is a growing trend of Jews taking action against the enemy. These appear to be the acts of a public which feels cornered and desperate, but those who take a closer look will see that these are actually the actions of a growing number of the public who are taking responsibility for ensuring the security of the Jews."
He continued, "After the murder of blessed Avitar Borovski (may God avenge his soul), different acts were carried out all across Israel. The acts were primarily carried out against the Arab community, those who cover up the crimes… The main thing is that the public is getting farther and farther away, and is going with a different vision, a vision of a government which represents the Jewish nation… these actions don't arise out of despair; they are the initial actions of a new public raising its head. These actions are being manifested by Jews who are beginning to sober up, those who understand that Judaism is the main reason we exist here. These actions are the beginnings of Jewish confidence, mutual helpfulness, and concern over the welfare of Jews both in Israel and around the world."
On May 28 of the same year, 30 days after Borovsky's murder by Palestinian terrorists, Elitzur published a second op-ed titled How to Catch Those who Commit "Price Tag" Attacks.
Orly Erez-Likhovski, the director of the Legal & Public Policy Department at the Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism's Israel Religious Action Center that submitted the petition, said, "Rabbi Elitzur said and published incitement that fell on the attentive ears of his students, and some of them are involved with acts of terrorism against Arabs."
Dr. Gadi Gvaryahu, the chairman of Tag Meir, which works against racism in Israel, commented, "We take no delight or pleasure in the attorney general's decision. This is a time for reckoning for the extreme right."
