Interior Minister Yishai: We lost Lebanon War due to lack of prayer

Ami Kaufman By Ami Kaufman January 18, 2012 | Edit
The audacity (combined with a sprinkling of stupidity and garnished with arrogance) of Interior Minister Eli Yishai (Shas) knows no limits. Channel 10 news reported last night that Yishai believes that if only IDF soldiers had spent a few minutes praying before they went to battle in the Litani river, their lives would have been spared. It’s not the first time, either.

“In the Six Day War, every Jew, and every Jew that went to battle, raised their eyes to the creator,” the Interior Minister said. But in the Second Lebanon War, Yishai said, the IDF relied only on its own strength.

“This is a great lesson,” Yishai said. “When all Arab states are against the Jewish people, what will save the Jewish people is study of the Torah.”

First of all, how about some respect for the people who put their life on the line for you and your yeshiva boys, Mr. Yishai?

How about you raise your friggin’ eyes for a minute from your holy books and ask yourself: “Should I really criticize soldiers for not praying during battle, when my voters have never held a rifle in their life?”

And how about you explain this one to me, Mr. Yishai: Since more and more of you guys are studying Torah each year, shouldn’t we have won that war? According to your logic, shouldn’t it have been even easier than the Six-Day War?

Yeah, keep having 10 kids, don’t teach ‘em math or English, don’t give ‘em a rifle either. Let’s see how far that and your holy books get us.

News Flash – This just in from our political correspondent: “Yair Lapid can’t get the grin off his face this morning.”

UPDATE (13:30 Israel): Yishai has just issued an “apology” [Heb]:

“I apologize to the bereaved families whose sons gave their lives for the land and the nation. The bereaved families and the fallen soldiers are sacred to the people of Israel. The statements cited yesterday were brought with tendentious intent and are untrue. As believers, it is clear to us that victories in Israeli wars depend on our faith in the creator.”

Ami Kaufman

Ami Kaufman was chief night editor for Haaretz, for the prominent Israeli financial daily Calcalist, and correspondent on Israeli affairs for 93.6 RAM FM, a joint Palestinian-Israel radio station. His interest in food and cooking led to culinary studies at the "Israeli CIA" (Tadmor, Herzliya) and a brief stint in the restaurant business. Born in Tel Aviv, Ami lives in Bat Yam with his wife and two daughters. In his spare time he blogs at Half & Half.

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