These past few days have proven beyond a doubt that Construction and Housing Minister and head of the United Torah Judaism Party Yitzhak Goldknopf is unfit to hold any position in the government.
A government is supposed to represent its people – all of its people. But Goldknopf, in actions revealed throughout the past few days, has betrayed his political base and turned his back on the very foundations of what makes this the State of Israel.
The first issue, one he has been outspoken about throughout his role in the government, is that of haredi (ultra-Orthodox) subsidies reduced due to the push for haredi conscription.
Goldknopf sent a letter to Cabinet-Secretary Yossi Fuchs in late February, stating that over NIS 1 billion of the 2025 budget proposal, which was, up until that point, allocated towards coalition funds, would instead enter the budget base as regular funds, meaning the funding would be used to overcome the loss of daycare subsidies to 7,000 haredim in which the military-age father has not reported for IDF service and to increase the salaries of employees in the private haredi education systems.
This is inherently discriminatory in favor of the haredi community, as the conscription policy has been up until this point. It, in essence, designates any tightening of conditions for conscription in the ultra-Orthodox community null and void.
Not to mention, it is illegal; the Attorney-General’s Office said the government cannot circumvent the loss of daycare subsidies by finding other funds to support families of yeshiva students since this would serve as a financial incentive for them to continue evading IDF service.
This was confirmed as having been reallocated in early March by Shas and UTJ faction Degel Hatorah.Goldknopf has also consistently been threatening to quit the government should a harsher push for haredi enlistment move forward within the 2025 budget.
Then, last week, Goldknopf revealed that in his capacity as construction and housing minister, he had repurposed housing projects in Beit Shemesh intended for non-haredi citizens to the haredi community.
Beit Shemesh is a mostly religious city with a large haredi presence. Doing something that egregious would have been at least unethical, at most illegal. He later clarified on X/Twitter that the ministry “operates in accordance with the law, and contrary to how interested parties sought to interpret my words – nothing has been done against regulations.”
He said in that same post that the ministry works “for the benefit of all populations in the State of Israel,” but that hasty cover-up cannot hide the stain of his previous claims and comments and the implications.
Even if he had not done so, he had bragged as though he had. Even if he had not followed through, it was clear this was an item or move he would have supported. That, in and of itself, should already turn scrutiny on the UTJ party head.
The tipping point
The final straw came Sunday when Goldknopf was filmed dancing to the anti-Zionist “Neturei Karta” anthem on Sunday.
Neturei Karta is an anti-Zionist and pro-Palestinian haredi group. It is a fringe group, even within haredi circles. They have been affiliated with Iran and participated in 2006 in the Holocaust denial event, the International Conference to Review the Global Vision of the Holocaust.
A government minister danced to its anthem.
He said he danced to the song so as not to offend the attendees at the party he was at, but that is a thinly veiled excuse for doing something not only anti-Israel but anti-Jewish as a whole.
Finally, on Monday, he quit – but not from the position he showed off, and then denied manipulating as housing and construction minister; he quit his position in the Prime Minister’s Office.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, after the dancing video went viral, said Goldknopf did well by apologizing and avoided addressing demands in the coalition and the opposition alike that Goldknopf be removed from the government.
Goldknopf must be ousted. He has proven himself to be anti-democratic and anti-Israel, and he must not be permitted to continue in a government position. If Netanyahu were to claim, as he has, that he is the voice of the people, he would remove him immediately.