Actor and singer Aviv Alush hosted a large ceremony in Lod this past weekend marking 30 years of the city’s Torah-based community nuclei, with thousands in attendance. The event was attended by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, Minister Orit Strock, MK Simcha Rothman, and Lod Mayor Yair Revivo, and featured performances by Akiva Turgeman, Shuli Rand, and Bini Landau.
During the evening, Alush spoke warmly about the role of the religious nuclei in mixed cities and the need to support grassroots work. He said that when people talk about “work built from the ground up, about a vision that becomes reality and about a community that turns faith into action, you also need people who know how to back that work.” He added that investment in Lod is “not just an investment in one city, but an investment in the future of Israeli society as a whole.”
Alush said that “throughout the way, and even more so since the events of Guardian of the Walls, the Religious Zionist Party and its leader have taken on promoting the work, settlement and community strengthening here in Lod and in the other mixed cities.” He also praised Smotrich’s conduct over the past three years, saying that despite the country’s challenges and the war, he has continued to follow, ask about, accompany and work for Lod and for the religious nuclei movement.
Alush concluded that Smotrich, together with his staff and party colleagues including Strock, sees the effort as “not only a local project but a national mission,” and said, “He is not just the finance minister, he is a fellow traveler.” Revivo also thanked Smotrich, saying he had insisted on discussing Lod’s budgets and infrastructure even during the festive event, and added, “You deserve to continue representing us.”
