Israeli Minister Gets Security Detail After Jewish Extremists Issue Ruling Calling for His Murder
Matan Kahana at a conference in Jerusalem, August.
Michael Hauser Tov writes in Haaretz,
The Jewish jurisprudence department in the Justice Ministry explains that halakhic principle of the religious law, known as “din rodef,” is based on the idea that “the saving of the life of a person pursued by an attacker is so important that even the killing of the pursuer is allowed to save the person from the pursuer, if no other option exists.”
The halakhic ruling concerning Kahana appears to have been issued last week, and the information about it reached the Shin Bet this week. It is not clear which community issued the ruling, but sources say it was a religious extremist fringe group.
Sources tied the threats against Kahana to several reforms he is promoting – most prominently those concerning kosher certifications and conversions, as well as discussions about a compromise plan for an egalitarian prayer space at the Western Wall. Another possible factor is Yamina’s choice to form a coalition government without ultra-Orthodox parties. A number of demonstrations against Kahana have been held since the coalition negotiations, and there have previously been low-level threats against him.
The Shin Bet views the din rodef ruling as an immediate threat and ordered bodyguards and security for Kahana as soon as it was discovered. According to the law that governs the Shin Bet, the service is not authorized to guard cabinet members – unless the ministerial committee that oversees the agency makes an exception for special cases. As a result, the mission of guarding Kahana was given to the security unit in the Prime Minister’s Office, known as the Magen unit. Since Sunday, Kahana has been protected by a guard posted outside his home and a bodyguard who accompanies him everywhere.
After Yosef’s statement, Israel’s judicial ombudsman, retired Supreme Court Justice Uri Shoham, asked Kahana to consider removing Yosef from his position as a judge on Israel’s Supreme Rabbinical Court.
The changes in policy on kosher certification were approved by the Knesset in November as part of the state budget and the Economic Arrangements Law. On January 1, 2023, supervision of kosher food in Israel is slated to be opened to full competition and the Chief Rabbinate’s monopoly will end. Approved private organizations will be allowed to grant supervision services and compete between themselves and with local religious councils.
The changes will offer the private certifiers two tracks. The first option is to go through the Rabbinate, which would allow them two kashrut levels – one stricter and the other more lenient. The second option is to use three senior rabbis authorized by the Rabbinate to rule on matters of kashrut, who would certify according to their own halakhic standard. The Rabbinate would oversee the standards and compliance for both tracks.
Only these approved bodies would be allowed to provide kosher certification. Municipal rabbis would also be allowed to grant certification to businesses outside their area of jurisdiction in order to encourage competition. Women would be allowed to serve as kosher supervisors, and all supervisors would be required to receive certification from the Chief Rabbinate.
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