U.S. State Department: Chacham Ovadiah’s ‘Offensive’ Remarks Harm Peace Efforts

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chacham-ovadiah-yosefThe United States Today condemned remarks by Chacham Ovadia Yosef, who said the Palestinians should “perish.” “We regret and condemn the inflammatory statements by Rabbi Ovadia Yosef,” U.S. State Department spokesman Philip J. Crowley. “These remarks are not only deeply offensive, but incitement such as this hurts the cause of peace.””As we move forward to relaunch peace negotiations, it is important that actions by people on all sides help to advance our effort, not hinder it.”

Rav Yosef had said during his weekly Motzoei Shabbos drasha that the Palestinians, namely Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, should perish from the world. Rav Yosef also described Palestinians as evil, bitter enemies of Israel.

“All these evil people should perish from this world … God should strike them with a plague, them and these Palestinians,” Rav Yosef had said.

Prime Minister Netanyahu today distanced himself from rav Yosef’s remarks, but stopped short of a condemnation.

“Rabbi Ovadia Yosef’s remarks do not reflect Netanyahu’s views, nor do they reflect the stance of the Israeli government,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement.

“Israel plans to take part in peace negotiations out of a desire to advance toward a peace agreement with the Palestinians that will end the conflict and ensure peace, security and good neighborly relations between the two peoples,” the statement continued.

Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat slammed Rav Yosef’s remarks, saying they were paramount to incitement to genocide.

Erekat called on the Israeli government to denounce the remarks by Rav Yosef  and to take action against racist remarks by other elected officials.

{Haaretz/Matzav.com}


15 COMMENTS

  1. When will it register in your mind Uncle Sam that Palestinians DO NOT WANT PEACE! It is a fact! Open your eyes and use your mind! They make a laughing stock out of all of us every time this comes up
    You want to talk to them?!?!?!?
    The only language they seem to understand is Arabic, and if do not speak it, you somehow become an infidel!
    I hope that Rabi Ovadia’s words come true very soon – Yimach Shmemam Vzichram!

  2. “Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat slammed Rav Yosef’s remarks, saying they were paramount to incitement to genocide”.

    You yourself promote genocide by just being you!

  3. Honesty is what erks the world. Everyone believes the same yet only the chacham will spew it out loudly and clearly.

  4. Chacham Ovadia Yosef is a gaon atzum! He’s open minded tzadik and says whats on his mind! May he live to great mashiach in our days, Amen. Read his sefarim wow incredible!

  5. It is very interesting when Regularly on Palestinian TV and the WAQIF in his publicly televised sermons yells and screams for the Killing of Jews THE STATE DEPARTMENT FAILS TO SAY ANYTHING see the MEMRI website for MULTIPLE SAMPLES yet when Reb Ovadiah makes a passing remark they are Up In arms a double standard of the Highest order I think.

  6. WHY NOT LEARN SOMETHING ? READ THIS
    cOMMENT #7 IS INCORRECT IN SAYING THE STATE DEPT FAILS TO SAY ANYTHING. COMMENT #7 IS BOTH FALSE, AND IT IS IRRELEVANT.

    LET ME EXPLAIN BOTH POINTS:
    THE STATE DEPT HAS MADE IT OFFICAL U.S. POLICY THAT THE PA MUST STOP INCITEMENT. ONLY SOMEONE WHO SELECTIVELY IGNORES THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA WOULD NOT KNOW THIS.
    SECONDLY, THE REASON CROWLEY SAID THIS WITH REGARD TO THE RAV IS BECAUSE HE IS THE DECISION MAKER AND SOLE AUTHORITY OF SHAS- A MEMBER OF THE LEGAL GOVERNMENT OF THE STATE OF ISRAEL AND A MEMBER OF THE PRIME MINSTER’S RULING COALTION.
    ONCE ANYONE UNDERSTANDS THIS IT IS VERY ELEMENTARY- IT WOULD BE THE HEIGHT OF HYPOCRISY IF CROWLEY DIDNT CONDEMN THE REMARKS LIHAVDIL JUST LIKE THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION ROUTINELY CONDEMNS PALESTINIAN INCITEMENT. HOWEVER, UNLIKE THE LIKUD COALTION, WHAT IS CALLED INCITEMENT IS NOT COMING FROM ABBAS’ RULING COALITION- INSTEAD THE INCITEMENT IS COMING FROM ELEMENTS THAT ARE NOT PART OF ABBAS’ RULING COALITION.
    QED

  7. Chacham Ovadya shlita says it the way it is, and he’s not a right wing extremist in any way, when peace seemed possible he was all for it, he held peace is a must to persue even if it means giving away huge areas but as soon as he realised that we are dealing with a puppet calle abu mazen who’s a terrorist and has no real intentions to make peace besides the fact that he could never deliver it because he’s not in charge, chacham Ovadya just said it, and if the palestinians have a problem with this then lets check the children schools text books if Obama cared for the truth he would see the palestinian educational system which is full of anti semitisim and realise that peace with these people who are teaching the next generation to hate us, is nothing more then a delusion

  8. United States whom do you think you are to condemned what the HOLY RABBI SAID, HE SPOKE THE TRUTH THE WAY IT SHOULD BE SHAME ON YOU ALL IN THE SO CAllED united states

  9. Peace will not be achieved with the Palestinians.
    At the time of the Oslo Accords, Rav Amnon Yitzchak predicted, based on his examination of the words of the Neviim and Chazal, exactly what would result from the peace initiative if Klal Yisroel did not collectively do T’shuva. Listen for yourselves:

    http://www.shofar.net/sounds/0035.mp3

  10. I think the State Department should confine themselves to politics and leave religious leaders alone as they have done till now. Rav Ovadia Yosef was making a religious statement, i.e. he expresses the prayer that the Palestinians and their leaders should perish. I don’t remember hearing the State Department expressing condemnation every time Nasrallah makes a religious statement about the destruction of Israel.

    If the moderator will allow, I would like to relate a Torah insight I heard from Rav Amnon Yitzchak.

    Why do we say in our Rosh Hashanah prayers: And T’shuva, prayer and charity are “Ma’avirin” the evil in the decree? Why not say that they should be “M’vatlin”, nullify it.
    The answer is, the evil deeds have been done and thus the Attribute of Justice demands retribution. However, if these three elements are present, the evil is “moved over” from the Jews to the goyim. See Rashi, Tehillim 47:4.
    May we merit that all the evil that we may have unleashed through our actions, rest on the heads of the Palestinians, Hamas, Nasrallah and Ahmanidejad.

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