Comments (1)Israeli Army Rabbi Says Women Should Not Serve
July 9, 2009Jerusalem
JTA Wire Service
The Israeli army’s top rabbi spurred calls for his dismissal after he said women should not serve in the military.
Avichai Ronski, the chief rabbi of the Israel Defense Forces, made the comments two weeks ago during a conference held for religious female soldiers, the Israeli daily Ha’aretz reported Thursday.
“I personally think that a priori, women should not serve in the army,” he reportedly said.
Following the report, lawmakers called for the rabbi’s dismissal.
“The chief rabbi crossed a red line in his statements and we mustn’t allow this to pass,” Ha’aretz quoted Labor lawmaker Ophir Pines-Paz as saying. “This is a chauvinistic and demeaning comment that encourages draft-dodging, and I call on the chief of staff to remove the chief rabbi from his post. The IDF is deserving of a different chief rabbi.”
Part of the rabbi’s responsibilities involve helping religious women with problems that crop up during their army service. Ronski has not dissuaded religious women from enlisting, Ynet reported.
For First Time, Knesset Member Gives Birth
A sitting Israeli Knesset member gave birth to a baby boy.
Yisrael Beiteinu lawmaker Anastassia Michaeli gave birth to her eighth child Sunday, becoming the first member of Knesset to have a baby while in office.
Knesset members are not entitled to maternity leave, according to a recent opinion by the parliament’s legal counsel.
Michaeli told Ha’aretz in an interview two months ago that she would work as usual, perhaps from home, and bring him to plenum meetings.
Ancient Quarry Uncovered in Jerusalem
Israeli archeologists uncovered an ancient quarry whose stones were likely used to build the Temple walls.
The stone quarry, uncovered during excavations on Shmuel Hanavi Street in Jerusalem prior to the construction of residential buildings, dates from the end of the Second Temple period.
“The immense size of the stones indicates it was highly likely that the large stones that were quarried at the site were destined for use in the construction of Herod’s magnificent projects in Jerusalem, including the Temple walls,” said Ofer Sion, the excavation director on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority.
Among the artifacts discovered in the excavation were metal plates referred to in the Talmud as “cheeks” that were used as fulcrums to sever the stones from the bedrock, and coins and pottery shards that date to the end of the Second Temple period.
This story reprinted courtesy of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.