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The issue has been ongoing for a little while, with Netanyahu both demanding a large number of designated slots into which he can personally choose someone for that slot, and also Netanyahu seemingly thinking that certain MKs who would benefit from the primaries and get into realistic slots might harm the Likud list in the upcoming national elections and cost the Likud some seats. That concern is based on advanced polling Netanyahu relies on.

In the end I think this is just posturing and Netanyahu won't go ahead with this. He will use this for some sort of compromise, perhaps to get more "shiryunim", reserved slots, than what others are willing to give but fewer than what he is demanding, or maybe something else. I just cannot see him canceling the primaries.

The Likud, and Netanyahu, has always been very proud of the primaries and uses them to attack many of the other parties. the Likud is one of just a few parties that hold real primaries to choose its candidates, and they regularly claim they are the only democratic party that holds primaruies while other parties have their candidates selected by the chairman or a committee. I have a hard time believing they are really going to give that up and make the Likud just like most of the other parties in that regard. I can see the attacks on the Likud for this if it happens, King Bibi canceling primaries and selecting the candidates that work for him. I don't think he will give anyone that opportunity.

And perhaps a bigger reason is that if there are no primaries, why should anyone be a member of the Likud? If they were to cancel the primaries I would assume there would be mass cancelations of membership, which would be a big financial hit to the Likud.

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though I am surprised they didn't know the term shabbos goy...

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Bennett said, "If I will be elected Prime Minister, I will shut down all the Haredi parties' school chains - (Personally (me, not Bennett) I think it is a problem that political parties are running schoool systems, but that's the way it is, now back to Bennett) Under our noses an independent Haredi anti-Zionist state has been established within Israel and we are funding it from our pockets. In the next government we will move to fix an historical error that allowed for the creation of seperate states. This is the rule: not stately (there is no great definition for mamlachti) - not on our dime...."

I dont know if he is serious or not about this. Maybe it is just trying to differentiate himself from others and bring in votes. Even if Bennett was serious about this, I doubt he would be able to do this, even if today's Opposition wins and he figures out a way to get the other parties (Eisenkot and Lieberman specifically) to support him for PM ... 60 or 70 years ago the Haredi school systems were tiny. Today they are massive. 

Even if he wins, nobody is forecasting a landslide that would give him a powerful government. Even if you trust the polls that forecast victory for the Opposition and defeat for today's Coalition parties, it will be another weak government (because it will be narrow) that will probably not last long and will not get anything major done. This is something major that will be a big fight and garner massive opposition and won't be so easy to accomplish.

I think this can be taken with a grain of salt

"It will all work out well in the end - It always does!" pic.twitter.com/2XZLa5rARG

— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) June 1, 2026

2. he sounds like a rebbi in yeshiva teaching the bochurim about emuna

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Last night there were protests and riots in and outside of Bet Shemesh. Peleg Yerushalmi people found out or heard that a yeshiva bochur in the area had been arrested, or maybe detained, for being a "deserter" from the IDF. They quickly mobilized and wreaked havoc in the area, including breaking into the police station where the detainee was supposedly being held, until they were eventually pushed out.

I'm honestly fascinated by the protests that happen when a yeshiva bochur is arrested/detained, and specifically by their level of organization.. 

They seem to have enough people all over the place to get a crowd quickly at the site of the arrest. They get the word out quickly and people show up immediately.

They don't have weapons but the police usually have no control and can't defend themselves against these protesters with the protesters often creating so much havoc that the police often releases the detainee or just gives up and leaves the area if they have not already gotten their guy. And like last night, they at times even break into the police station and physically free them from the clutches of the police. 

No consequences, nobody really gets into any trouble, anyone arrested for this behavior seems to be released fairly quickly.

I'm amazed and fascinated.

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Feiglin has proposed to all parties to the right of the Likud, being Zehut, Otzma Yehudit (Ben Gvir), Hatzionut Hadatit (Smotritch), and Ofer Vinter (who has not yet announced a new party or what party he will be running in but looks like he is making preparation to run in the elections) to come together in one large party. 

Feiglin mentioned joining together as a technical block, but for his goal, which I have not yet mentioned, I think it should be an actual merged one party, not a technical block.

So Feiglin wants the parties to all join together in one form or another (he suggests a technical block but I doubt that he is not open to other arrangements), and he says the positioning of candidates within can be determined by a very simple poll. 

If they were all to join forces into one party running in the elections, Feiglin thinks they can challenge the Likud and even surpass them as the largest party on the Right side of the political coin. This would allow them to actually be the ruling party and not just small sectoral parties, unseating PM Netanyahu and actually ruling the country with right wing ideals.

This is an intiative I can get behind, and is basically (not the specific details but the concept) something I have been reocmmending for the last few years - the Right parties should get together and push out Netanyahu and support someone else for Prime Minister. This tactical plan goes beyond what I envisioned, which is why they are in politics and not me, but the idea is one I can support.

I am not sure even together they have the numbers to succeed, but they should at least try!

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Of the technological units in which people will be affected by having served there, 8200 is the most famous but there are many others as well.

People from the hitech industry along with tax experts are calling this proposal draconian and say they will fight it and work against its passage.

The motivation of the Tax Authority is that these young men and women who graduate from the IDF's technological units were invested in heavily by Ithe State of Israel and they were given knowledge and tools and skills throughout their IDF service. They use that investment of Israel in them to then establish companies, but sometimes they move abroad and the State does not benefit from that investment when they become successful. The purpose of this proposal will be to give them the status of Israeli resident for tax purposes even if they move abroad within the first ten years so Israel can tax them accordingly and benefit from their success which was built off the back of the State of Israel.

The new law, should it be proposed and pass, will not take effect retroactively and will only apply to new recruits from the point the law is passed.

Those who oppose the proposal are calling it a draconian law and are saying it opposes basic laws such as freedom of movement and employment, along with international tax conventions. They say it also negatively discriminates against graduates of these units in the workforce. The way to keep these technology graduates in Israel is by creating the environment in which they will want to stay.

source: Globes

I get the reason for the law. It makes sense in some way. But the State really gets back its investment in these young men and women during their army service. These units have tremendous accomplishments. Why does the ROI have to include taxes for it be reasonable? And many of them do stay in Israel (I wonder if there are numbers showing percentages of how many stay within the first ten years vs how many relocate abroad) so Israel collects taxes on them as well... I understand the logic of such a move but I think the complaint behind it is disingenuous.

What do you think?

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This photo of Captain (Reserves) Yehuda Weitzman heading out to return back to his military base in Lebanon bearing a sefer torah (written in memory of two brothers, Hillel and Yagel Yaniv, two brothers who were killed in a terrorist attack in Hawara) alongside his military gear, captured the hearts of the masses online...

As a follow up to this picture, Goldberg captured another brilliant shot at the Central Bus Station...

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The Haredi parties, especially Degel Hatorah, were pushing for the law to be brought to vote, though they never said they got the go ahead from Rav Landau and Rav Hirsch to actually support it. When they sqaw it was not coming and PM Netanyahu was not doing anything about it, ot the point that Netanyahu told them it will have to wait for the next government, they decided to bring down the government over it. Even though they themselves never said they would support it.

So they decde they can't trust Netanyahu any longer and he is just playing with them, constantly making excuses to buy time and kick the can down the road, so they support going to early election (not a big deal, it is a different of 4-6 weeks, not any significant change). The initial vote passes. PM Netanyahu seems to go into panic mode and despite the process of voting the government out having started, he tries to push the bill through, has the committee put on the afterburner and plan to bring it to vote almost immediately, whether he has the votes or not - even if it does not pass he can say I brought it to vote and tried, don't blame me.

Tonight Degel announced they will not play along. We are not interested in Netanyahu just bringing it to a vote. They are also saying it is a bad proposal - though they still have not said if they would or would not support it should it actually come to a vote. They said Netanyahu can't just bring a law, he has to bring a law with a majority vote.

So Netanyahu first said wait until after the elections, Degel said no. Now Netanyahu is pushing for a quick vote on a law and Degel is saying, no, wait until after the elections. 

The news is reporting, anonymously of course, that the people around Netanyahu are angry at Degel Hatorah saying Degel played with them. Degel, they are saying, never planned to support the bill, they now just want to blame its failure on Netanyahu. Netanyahu's biggest concern, which is what's pushing him to push the law forward now, is that Degel might not support him for Prime Minister after the next election - he already lost Agudat Israel. And if Degel doesn't, it will be messy for Shas as well.

So they are each blaming the other for the failure of a bill that neither side, seemingly, wanted. Degel spent four years ignoring the fact that Netanyahu was trying to not bring the bill forward and only make it look like he was taking it seriously to keep them happy. Netanyahu spent four years saying this bill (that he clearly never actually intended to bring to vote) would bring 23000 haredim to the army within 3 years while ignoring the fact that the Haredi leadership repeatedly said, despite pushing for a bill, that despite any passed law not a single Haredi would conscript because of it.

Will Netanyahu successfully push a law through with a majority vote this week and save himself? We'll see what happens.

My wife Toby and I are in @Israel becoming citizens. At the Interior Ministry, the official reviewing our papers - a Jew who came from Ethiopia in 1991 - asked me for proof that I was Jewish.

I showed him letters from our rabbi. As I did so, tears began to flow.

I told him: “I…

— Rabbi Avi Weiss (@RabbiAviWeiss) May 19, 2026

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For what I guess is the second time, as last year they announced it "for the first time in two thousand years", some people from Yeshivat Hamikdash broke into Har Habayit via Shaar Hatzon, an ancient gate into the walls of Har Habyit via which the sheep were generally brought into the mikash for sacrifices, and performed the sacrifical rite of waving the "2 loaves" on Friday on the holiday of Shavuos. The "hanafat shtei halechem", the waving of the two loaves is the central korban of the Shavuos holiday (in addition to other korbanos that are less possible to bring or perform today).

It is hard to find too many details about this incident but the "Har Habait News" mentions it saying 14 people broke in to Har Habayit through Shaar Hatzon on Shavuos, 9 of whom succeeded in getting in, including Ariel Cohen, to the area of the azara, the inner courtyard of the mikdash where korbanos would be sacrificed. Once there, Cohen, dressed in the Priestly Garments, waved the two loaves, performing the ritual as prescribed.

Ariel Cohen did the same last year as well.

They were all captured and detained.

Har Habayit was closed to Jews on the shavuos holiday, so they really had to break in somehow. I would really like to discover how they got in. Har Habayit is an extremely secure and locked down area.

Can the "Two Loaves" be brought nowadays? I don't really know, I am no authority on this, but form what I understand it is considered a public offering which is generally allowed when the entire, or majority of the, community is impure (similar to Korban Pesach), but there are connected requirements that are more problematic. I found this rundown of the issues on the Har Habait News site if you are interested in learning more about it.

Are these a bunch of delusional kids making trouble, getting involved in dangerous matters (bringing korbanos could be trouble if not done properly - of which there are many aspects)? Are they heroes forcing a matter few want to talk about but some think the time has come? Can it be considered a korban tzibbur, a public offering, if the tzibbur, the public, isn't aware of it, isn't interested in it, and maybe largely even opposes it? Does it matter, if there is an obligation and this Cohen fellow is fulfilling it? I know several years back I would have thought this was a great thing, while now I just don't know. I do think it is good from the perspective of bringing awareness and raising discussion. And I still want to know how they circumvented to police and successfully broke into the most secured strip of land in the country with enough time to do this ritual.

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The agreement on the table, as reported, does not look great for Israel's interests (to put it mildly), but we have been in similar situations before. Israeli reporesentatives are not saying anything, Trump is talking about it being a great deal, and the ranians are saying things that contradict things they are supposedly agreeing to. 

Is it a head fake and the USA is about to go on the attack again while everyone thinks a deal is about to be signed, or is a deal really about to be signed? I am not sure we have any way to make an educated guess. I also would not be surprised if we don't get a deal signed (at least in the coming days) but we also do not get an attack but Trump announces an extension to continue working out the details or something like that.

Confusing times. Sometimes this type of situation can be worse than an actual deal (even a bad one) or attack - can't really make plans, people do not know what to do, terror continues (at least from Hezbollah)

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Noam Betan, Israel's representative to Eurovision 2026, celebrates, including recitnig Shema Yisrael, upon acheiving 2nd place at the contest last night

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The USA is celebrating its 250th national birthday this year...

Under the banner of Freedom 250, the USA is running all sorts of celebrations and initiatives. Under the banner of Rededicate 250, a program of national prayer, praise and thanksgiving, on Sunday May 17 the American people will come together at the National Mall to prepare for the 250th birthday with prayer, Scripture, thanksgiving and rededication of the country as One Nation Under God. You can see more about the program at the linked website. Rabbi Meir Soloveichik is listed among the faith leaders who will be participating in the program.

And to that end, President Trump, as posted on the White House website, has called on and encourages all Jewish Americans, with Jewish American Heritage Month being now (May is always Jewish American Heritage Month), to observe a "national Sabbath" - the Shabbos of May 15-16 from sundown  to nightfall, friends, families and communities should "come together in gratitude for our great nation", recognizing the sacre Jewish tradition of setting aside time for rest, reflection and gratitude to the Almighty. President Trump further calls " I call upon Americans to celebrate the heritage and contributions of Jewish Americans and to observe this month with appropriate programs, activities, and ceremonies.  I further call on all Americans to celebrate their faith and freedom throughout this year, during this month, and especially on Shabbat to celebrate our 250th year."

So, keep Shabbos for Trump on May 15... :-) .. He actually does not reference keep halachic shabbos, but rest, reflection and gratitude are great things as well....

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Tziyunov is definitely getting the attention he was looking for.

Tziyunov went to a football (soccer) game the other day and drew a lot of attention, and last night he went to a nightclub (shalvata) in Tel Aviv in full regalia and hung out with the deejay swaying to the beats...but today he was slapped with a cease and desist letter from the Council of the Sephardi and Oriental Communities in Jerusalem, the Vaad Adat Hesephardim...

I like how in the address section of the letter they address the letter to him with the title "The One Who Dresses in Vain in the Cloak of the Rishon Letzion"

In the letter the Chairman of the council writes the vaad was established 759 years ago upon the Rambans arrival in Jerusalem.. Since the 17th century all Rishon Letzions since Rav Moshe Gelenti have served wearing the unique robes and headdress and the Council holds exclusive rights on the inaugural ceremonies and the dressing of the Rishon Letzions robes and headdress, uninterrupted during the Ottoman rule and under the British Mandate. All have been designed and sewn under the authority of the Council and the Council holds the trademark/copyright and it is illegal to copy this.

The letter goes on to say he has no right to use it, etc etc and should immediately cease to wear it in public and in appearances before legal action will be taken.

Wow. Interesting. I did not know that this old council holds the legal rights to this outfit.

I somehow suspect that he is not going to be deterred by this letter. I am curious to see what will happn and if they will take him to court over this and what the courts will say...

Tziyunov is right now basking his 15 minutes in the sun and is probably getting more attention than he ever fantasized about.

With the ceasefire still holding, even if just barely, our grand country seems to be very bored that this is one of the big issues of the day... 

 

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Why did his name come up?

During the torch lighting ceremony on Har Harzl, the night of Yom Haatzmaut, perhaps you noticed the camera panning on the crowd rest momentarily on the above person.

I noticed and wondered who that is and why he is dressed like that as it is clearly not Rishon LeTzion Chief Rabbi Dovid Yosef (who, if I am not mistaken, bowed out of the ceremony due to illness) or his brother former Chief Rabbi Yitzchak Yosef or former Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar. 

It seems many other people were wondering as well because throughout the day of Yom Haatzmaut this was one of the most discussed topics - who it was, why he dressed like that and more. Quite a stir was caused by his appearance.

So it turns out this is a fellow named Eyal Tziyunov who seems to be quite a character, claiming at times to be mashiach, dressing not infrequently like a Chief Rabbi, (I saw a cute line of someone, I think it was Yair Cherki) calling him the Rishon LeTziyunov), going up to Har Habayit dressed in this garb despite the Chief Rabbis all supporting the official Chief Rabbinate position of not going to Har Habayit.... is he a rabbi or not? I dont know, but sometimes I have seen him referred to as Rav Eyal Tziyunov and sometimes just as Eyal Tziyunov.

The interesting thing is there was both outrage and a supposed security incident with him at the ceremony dressed like this.

There were attempts to push the Rabbanut to file a complaint with the police and have him arrested. I am not quite sure for what. Is it illegal to wear the robes and hat? is Purim a legal exception or is it illegal then as well? Is the Sephardic Chief Rabbi (and former SCRs) the only person legally allowed to wear the outfit? As far as I know he has never claimed to be the Chief Rabbi and in interviews over the past day or so he has explicitly denied any claims that he is claiming to be so.

People also complained a security failure because he was able to get into the event and be in the crowd in proximity of the Prime Minister. I am not sure why that was an issue. I assume security checked him and did not find him to be carrying a gun or any other weapon. He never attacked anyone. I am nto quite sure what the failure is. Maybe people are assuming he was not checked because security might have thought he was the Chief Rabbi? I would assume a badge or some identification has to be shown to get through security, and I would like to believe security at these events is already familiar with the Chief Rabbis and cannot be so easily fooled (though you never know). Also the design on his robe and the quality of the garments is not the same as that of the garments used by the Chief Rabbi and are easily distinguished.

I hope this guy gets the help he needs if he is more than just eccentric, but let's not turn everything into a crisis and an insult.

the video got passed around and went somewhat viral and it created quite a stir with different personalities such as Aryeh Deri and Aryeh Erlich, among others, getting involved, donating money and spekaing out against what happened and calling on people to donate..

Inbar Twizer, the journalist who posted the video, later defended herslef, to the onslaught of attacks against because of her video, saying that her husnad had just returned from funerals of six of his friends in miluim who had fallen in battle in Lebanon, and all of them were religious, and these 18 year olds knocked on the door and we had a pleasant conversation  in which we asked them why they have not inducted into the army. If anyone thinks we shamed them, we can agree about one thing - that not inducting into the army at this time - that is definitely something to be ashamed of.

Each and every person has the right to decide to whom to give charity. Nobody is obligated to give to whoever knocks at the door, and if you dont approve of the lifestyle of someone asking for tzedaka, feel free to not donate.

That being said, while you can choose to donate tzedaka or not donate tzedaka to any given person r organization, there is no need to treat people disrespectfully. There is a time and a place for those discussions. Go arrange a meeting between representatives of the various communities and aks the questions and have your discussions. Set up one on one meetings with average young and old haredim and ask your questions about why they do this or that. You should not treat people disrespectfully. Two young men coming to the door for one purpose do not need to be harassed like that and then shamed online. She could have asked them if they serve in the army and upon hearing no she could have chosen to not donate and send them on their way without causing a big stir. 

That is Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch, one of the Haredi gedolim today and Rosh Yeshiva of Slabodka Yeshiva in Bnei Braq, autographing a baseball in a donor's home (parlor meeting I guess) in Chicago... shortly after this he flew back to Israel... 

Being that he was born in the USA (NY) and lived there for almost 30 years before moving to Israel, I wonder if he has fond memories of baseball (as Rav Scheinberg famously did) and if he was a fan of any team when he was younger....

Traditionally Israelis go out on Yom Haatzmaut and hit the trails, see the sights, bask largely in nature. The weather is beautiful today. 

We went out with friends to his on Gan Emek HaEla up to Shaaraim, an old archaeological site dated to King David and is thought to have been the location of one of his palaces... Because Israelis traditionally go out and hit the trails before having a bbq celebration, there is always lots of traffic on Yom Haatzmaut, and popular sites can fill up very quickly. We try to avoid the traffic by going out a little buit earlier, and doing things closer to home. Shaaraim is right outside Bet Shemesh, and you can even see RBS D from the archaeological site. We accomplished our goals and did not sit in traffic, had a lovely hike and saw some people, though it was not crowded when we were there.

Befitting the day, the trail marker for our tiyul was blue and white...

and on our way out to the tiyul, just as we were heading out of Bet Shemesh, we spotted an eagle doing the air force's regular Yom Haatzmaut and performing a flyover... The Air Force flyovers are canceled this year due to the situation with Iran, so the eagle made sure we did not miss out...

Happy Birthday Israel!

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