Yair Golan said on Sunday night that any government in which he serves would stop public funding for the Alei pre-military academy and other institutions. His remarks came after a video posted by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich depicted a future government led by Gadi Eisenkot, with Golan as defense minister, in which Golan shuts down the academy.
In the video, titled, “What will happen to Alei on the day Yair Golan becomes defense minister in an Eisenkot government?”, Smotrich wrote that “Yair Golan and Gadi Eisenkot mean what they say.” Golan then replied, “Thank you, Bezalel. Educational institutions that promote racism, hatred of LGBTQ people and work against women’s service in the IDF will stop receiving our tax money.”
The Religious Zionism camp sharply criticized Golan’s statement, saying Alei is one of Israel’s oldest and most influential preparatory academies and has trained thousands of soldiers, commanders and officers for combat units and the IDF’s command ranks. They added that since the start of the Iron Swords war, the academy has paid a heavy price, with dozens of its graduates and students killed in fighting in Gaza, Lebanon and other battlefronts.
Party figures said the public should understand what a left-wing government led by Eisenkot and Golan would mean, arguing it would harm institutions that raise some of the IDF’s best fighters and commanders at a time when Israel needs them most.
