Stormy Reactions as Bennett Announces Establishment of a New Chareidi City in the Negev

At the beginning of the Cabinet meeting that convened on Monday, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett spoke about a new chareidi city that will be established in the Negev.

Bennett spoke about the new city and said, “We are also deciding today on the establishment of a chareidi city, Kasif, which will alleviate the severe housing crisis in the chareidi community. For many years the state has not established a new chareidi city, and we are doing it today.”

The idea for Kasif was born in 2007, and the location was chosen because it is state-owned land with no claims of ownership by local Bedouin. In 2013, the Housing Ministry ordered that construction of the town be advanced, but that its population be delayed until proper permits were received.

During his tenure as Construction and Housing Minister, Rabbi Yaakov Litzman scrapped a plan to construct a new chareidi city in Kasif.

At the time, and still now, the chareidi community does not see Kasif as an appropriate solution for the sector’s housing crisis, since it is too far away from other municipal centers.

In 2016, the Housing Ministry published a strategic plan for the town’s housing, but noted that “there is great doubt regarding whether the town will be appropriate for the chareidi public.”

MK Rabbi Yaakov Litzman (UTJ) responded to the government descision: “The cancellation of the establishment of Kiryat Gat West (Shafir) for the chareidi public, by Elkin and Shaked, is nothing less than a scandal. As the former Housing Minister, I can say that this is a decision contrary to the position of the professionals in the Ministry of Housing and the Interior, who were full partners in the decision, together with my colleague Rabbi Aryeh Deri when he was Interior Minister, to designate the place as a solution to the chareidi housing crisis.

“All the talk and promises about the establishment of Kasif for the chareidi are pouting salt on the wounds and further damage by the government to the needs of young couples in the chareidi community. One can be sure that Kasif will not end up with chareidim but with Bedouin, as planned.”

MK Rabbi Moshe Gafni responded to Bennett’s descision: “Throughout the years, I have opposed the establishment of a chareidi city in Kasif. Indeed, the issue was rejected and instead they decided to build a chareidi city in Shafir.

“Now, the government has taken advantage of the fact that we are not in the coalition – it has abolished Shafir, and is throwing the chareidi public to Kasif, a place that no one will go to.”

MK Rabbi Yaakov Asher (UTJ) said: “Establishing Kasif somewhere in the distant future will in no way cover up this horrible crime of abolishing the planned chareidi city in Kiryat Gat. Mr. Bennett, we might be chareidi, but we are not stupid.”

MK Rabbi Michael Malkieli (Shas) responded: “Whoever wants to ship off the chareidi public in Kasif will find us in the central city of Israel. It’s simple.”