A heated confrontation broke out on Wednesday evening during a live broadcast on Israeli’s Channel 12 News between journalist Menachem Horowitz and Boaz Naki, a spokesman for the Peleg Yerushalmi, as tensions over the draft law continue to intensify.
During the debate, Horowitz criticized the current exemption structure for yeshiva students, saying: “אנשים עם כיפות סרוגות נהרגו ונטבחו והם תלמידי חכמים לא פחות מהבן שלך” — “People with knitted kippahs were killed and slaughtered, and they are no less talmidei chachamim than your son.”
Naki immediately pushed back, responding sharply: “לא כמו בני התורה שיושבים ולומדים” — “They are not like the bnei Torah who sit and learn.”
The discussion escalated further when Naki challenged the comparison between the mother of a soldier on the frontlines and the mother of a chareidi yeshiva student. He remarked:
“מי שהולך ל-8200 ויושב בחדר ממוזג גם מפחד למות? אני עושה יותר מ-8200” — “Someone who goes to Unit 8200 and sits in an air-conditioned room — is he also afraid of dying? I’m doing more than 8200.”
Horowitz fired back: “אתם לא מתגייסים, כי אתם שמעתם על מאות אנשים שנהרגו בקרבות. אתה רוצה את הבן שלך בראש השנה לידך” — “You’re not enlisting because you’ve heard about hundreds of people killed in battles. You want your son next to you on Rosh Hashanah.”
Naki later referred to comments made by the current IDF Chief of Staff, stating: “הרמטכ”ל אמר דבר חשוב, שצריכים כולם להתגייס, הוא התכוון על הצפונבונים שלא מתגייסים בהמוניהם” — “The Chief of Staff said something important, that everyone should enlist, but he was talking about the privileged northerners who don’t draft in large numbers.”
He then questioned why, according to him, tens of thousands of soldiers released from service under former Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi were not being recalled to active duty.
The debate reached its peak when Horowitz asserted: “בני ישיבות ההסדר יותר תלמידי חכמים” — “Students in hesder yeshivas are greater talmidei chachamim.”
Naki shot back furiously: “שקר, אתה יודע שזה שקר” — “That’s a lie, and you know it’s a lie.”
WATCH:
In hesder yeshivot they learn tanach and machshava seriously together with gemara and rishonim. Charedi Ashkenazim typically don’t know Tanach and much of anything other than lomdus. The journalist is correct.
They played Naki like a fiddle .
If Peleg wants to have a seat at the table they need to have better talking points .
Only an amateur uses the my boys are bigger talmidei chachomim than yours argument .
Suppose a draft law is written up that frees lomdei Torah from enlistment in IDF. What are the other factions complaining about? Send your sons to Talmud Torah! I don’t understand the oppostion of Lomdei Torah.
I don’t think it is helpful for the CHareidi side to insist that they are greater Talmidei Chachamim than the Hesder people.
It’s just the facts.
Only because the other side doesnt seem to place much value in being a talmid chochom.
Otherwise the argument is actually quite cogent.