RAMALLAH, Dec 8 (JMCC) - Israeli President
Shimon Peres and
Knesset Member Ahmed Tibi criticized the 47 rabbis promoting a ban of land and home sales to non-Jews, echoing condemnations by Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu and the Anti-Defamation League.
“In response to many people’s questions, the rabbis wrote, we hereby reply that it is prohibited by the Torah to sell a house or a field in the Land of Israel to a gentile.”
The letter describes the danger of interfaith marriages, potential deleterious effects of mixed-culture neighborhoods, and property value loss from integration. The rabbis quote from the Code of Jewish Law, medieval philosopher Maimonides, and other sources.
Peres stated the letter damages the State of
Israel, and MK Tibi called them to neo-Nazis.
I am confident that the number of [such] rabbis will only increase, said Tibi. He continued, We are dealing with skinhead rabbis who are working against the Arabs.
Peres called on the nation to preserve these true values of democracy, Judaism and equality, because these are the issues that affect our lives.
In his speeches in Israel and abroad, Peres has frequently referred to minority rights in Israel and has declared many times that the non-Jewish population is entitled to the same educational work and housing opportunities as the Jewish population.
He is also convinced that tensions between Jewish and non-Jewish sectors of the population would abate if all sectors were given equal opportunities to improve the quality of their lives.
Read more at
The Jerusalem Post...