MK Avi Maoz Resigns from Government

Avi Maoz, chairman of the far-right Noam party, on Monday announced his resignation as a deputy minister in Israel’s government, but said he would stay on as a coalition member.

“I will continue to serve the public as a member of the coalition’s Knesset (parliament). I will support all the measures that we have agreed together – among others, the very important legislation to restore the balance between legislative and judicial powers,” he wrote in a letter to Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu.

Maoz was appointed to a role in which he was given oversight of external programming in the Education Ministry, irking pro-liberal forces. He is the sole representative of the anti-LGBTQ+ Noam party in parliament, having run alongside the far-right Religious Zionism and Jewish Power blocs in the November 2022 election.

In his resignation letter, he said he had been frustrated by his inability to bring about meaningful change in his role, and “was shocked to find there was no serious intention of honoring the coalition deal regarding an authority of Jewish identity” that he would have led.

“Over the generations, the people of Israel have been able to preserve what is most dear to them – our identity as the Jewish people, by preserving the sanctity of Israel, and by worshiping the supreme value of the family in Israel. With the establishment of the government, I was happy to be part of it, as evidenced by the coalition agreement,” he continued.

“As a result, I have decided to resign from the post of Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office, and fulfill my duties as a full member of the Knesset in the coalition.” –i24 News