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Three years after he narrowly became Israel's prime minister, Isaac Herzog says he's eager to become the "prime minister of the Jewish people" in his new role
as president of the Jewish Agency.
The long-standing cabinet minister and outgoing leader of the opposition to Benjamin Netanyahu can be done with politics for the moment. But at a time of unprecedented tension between Israel and the more liberal Jewish diaspora, Father Herzog, 57, told the Associated Press on Monday that he sees an even higher calling to the head. of the non-governmental organization dedicated to filling this gap.
Herzog resigning from the Knesset (Photo: Knesset Spokesman)
"I was ready to be I wanted to be Prime Minister of Israel and yet, I am intrigued by this new challenge, "he said from his almost vacant position in Parliament, where he had resigned after 15 years in the Knesset "We live in a time when we can drift towards an irreparable crisis, an irreparable fracture."
Most American Jews belong to the most liberal liberal and conservative currents and feel alienated by the ultra-Orthodox authorities of Israel, who maintain a strict monopoly on everyday Jewish life in the Holy Land and question their faith and their practices. The ultra-orthodox establishment considers that other tensions are too lax and deeply opposes interreligious marriage and the ordination of women and gays.
The government's decision to scrap plans for a mixed prayer area at the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem and insults against those pushing it, led American Jewish leaders to warn that it could undermine their political financial and emotional support for Israel.
Herzog with his replacement as president of the Zionist Union Avi Gabbay (Photo: Alex Kolomoisky
The recent adoption of a controversial law consecrating the Jewish character of the state, which critics here and abroad claim have undermined the traditional democratic values of the state. Israel has also upset American Jews, who increasingly find themselves in disagreement
with the nationalist, religious and pro-government trend of the government.
Herzog promises to be the bridge and give a powerful voice to the Jewish diaspora. Before taking office at the Jewish Agency on Wednesday, he said he met with all members of the country's governing coalition to send them a harsh warning.
"I explained to them openly and I said publicly and privately:" Everything you say and hear in Israel hurts hearts and hurts our Jewish brothers and sisters who love Israel, who respect Israel is part of its strength, "he said. "There are enough elements that want to tear that relationship apart, so calm down."
Herzog, a former Labor Party leader, succeeds former Soviet political prisoner Natan Sharansky as president of the Jewish Agency, where he will oversee an umbrella organization endowed with an annual budget $ 362 million.
He brings with him a strong political legacy. His late father, Chaim Herzog, was president of Israel from 1983 to 1993 and was his ambbadador to the United Nations. His uncle was the legendary Foreign Minister Abba Eban.
Herzog, L, Steinitz (Photo: Avi Mualem)
Herzog was chosen on the Minister of Energy Yuval Steinitz, a close ally of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Although the appointment was considered a defeat for Netanyahu,
Herzog vowed to work closely with his political rival and said that they had a good relationship despite a run for the prime minister in the 2015 hotly contested.
Still, he warned against badimilating the Jewish state and all its diversity to its polarizing and long-time leader.
"Israel is much bigger than the immediate term of this person or person," he said. "The leaders come and go, we are a very vibrant democracy and there will be a political change at one time or another, I was not far from that a few years ago and I am convinced that it is a very good thing. is still possible. "
(Photo: Amit Shabi)
The Jewish Agency enjoys an inheritance as a government pending before the founding of Israel in 1948 , and David Ben Gurion was its president before becoming Israel's first prime minister. He was then instrumental in orchestrating large waves of Jewish immigration to Israel. But some critics say that in the decades that followed, it became largely irrelevant.
"This bodes to be the bridge, the connection between Israel and the Jewish diaspora, but there is not much behind that," said Nahum Barnea, prominent columnist for the daily Yediot Ahronot . "It really has very little influence."
He said that Herzog was riding a "wooden horse" since Netanyahu already saw himself as the leader of the Jewish people and would not do anything to give up that role.
million. Herzog rejected the criticism that he was simply looking for a snug job after losing his party leadership, saying the crisis was too big to ignore. He insisted that it was a two-way street and promised to bring Jews closer to the world of Israel.
"We have to be very careful, we can talk to Israel about a lot of things, but we have to make sure that some of our enemies and detractors will not be able to use it to undermine our right to exist" , he said. "One still feels like a family on both sides of the ocean."
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