Reservists’ Activist Warns Israel’s Internal Divide Is a Bigger Threat Than Iran

Attorney Shvut Raanan, one of the leaders of the reservists’ wives protest movement and a candidate in the Reservists Party primaries, said at the annual conference of the Jewish People Policy Institute that Israel’s most urgent challenge is preserving national unity and avoiding internal fracture.

Speaking to Channel 7, Raanan said the internal split is more dangerous than outside security threats. “After we finish with Iran, another enemy will come. We are Jews, we know this well,” she said. “What we also know from our history is that when we fight among ourselves, the house is destroyed. So this is more dangerous.”

She also addressed the ultra-Orthodox draft issue and her dispute with MK Yaakov Asher, criticizing ultra-Orthodox leadership and past proposals for enlistment. “He twisted himself into knots not to say this sentence, that whoever does not study should enlist,” she said. Raanan said she was glad “we did not buy the lies of the ultra-Orthodox leadership” and did not let a law without personal incentives pass. In her view, only individual incentives for ultra-Orthodox men can create practical cohesion and shared responsibility for Israel’s security. “Who keeps them in chains is the ultra-Orthodox leadership,” she said.

Raanan added that even the current situation is preferable to a law that would not have brought real change. “I wanted a serious law, I was not prepared for a law that is a lie. The current situation is not ideal, but it is what there is, and it can still bring the individuals from below, until we create something more serious.” She also welcomed Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s change in stance on the draft issue, saying, “I am very happy, it is about time. I am very sorry he did not do this earlier.” Looking ahead to the elections, she said she hopes all forces seeking a broad Zionist government will unite into a significant political bloc.