Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied his son is dating a
non-Jewish Norwegian woman, Channel 10 reported Wednesday. In the first
response since news of the purported romance between Yair Netanyahu, 23 and
Sandra Leikanger, 25, made waves in Israel, an official in the Prime Minister's
Office told Shas leader Aryeh Deri that the two only study together.
The PMO denied reports in Norwegian papers that Netanyahu
told his counterpart, Prime Minister Erna Solberg, that there was a romantic
relationship between the two.
A report in the Norwegian newspaper Dagen shows
photographs of the pair posing in different locations in Norway. The two
reportedly met while Leikanger was studying at the Interdisciplinary Center in
Herzliya.
In an interview Monday, Deri lamented the news, telling an
ultra-Orthodox radio station, Kol Barama, that if true, Netanyahu and wife Sara
would experience "great heartache."
Deri said the criticism was not an attack against the
premier, but rather an issue of national concern. "I try not to raise
personal criticism, but if, heaven forbid, this is true, it is no longer a
personal matter – it is a symbol of the Jewish people."
The Shas leader went on to describe the great efforts being
made to prevent assimilation, saying, "I have friends who invest tens of
millions, hundreds of millions to fight assimilation throughout the world. If,
heaven forbid, this is true, woe is us. I hope it is not true…."
Other religious politicians came out against the reported
relationship, including hardline Likud MK Moshe Feiglin and other members of
Shas.
The Israeli organization Lehava, which says it aims "to
prevent assimilation in the Holy Land," urged Netanyahu on its Facebook
page "to prevent this relationship," AFP reported.
"Your grandchildren, as you know, will not be
Jewish," Lehava director Bentzi Gopshtain warned Netanyahu in the post.
No comments:
Post a Comment