The Commonality of Humanity, An Artist's Journey
Prologue
Judiciary Overhaul protests, strikes and demonstrations over the past 29 weeks didn’t happen in a vacuum. It wasn’t a bubble of singular discontent.
The ‘writing on the wall‘ was decades ago, even before the 1995 Benjamin ‘Bibi’ Netanyahu anti-peace, anti-two state solution, anti-Rabin demonstrations that culminated in the murder of Yitzchak Rabin.
This is the first part of a short series bringing to light historic events that all lead to extortion, crimes, breach of trust, fraud, incitement and division.
Lesson One: How to Crown Bibi King of Israel
Question: How did the privileged Ashkenazi Israeli-born Netanyahu whose ancestry is of white Eastern European Jewry transition into King Bibi, the Savior of the often ridiculed, seemingly less privileged, poorer, oppressed, less educated Mizrahi/Sephardic immigrant Israeli Jews? (Mizrahi/Sephardic Jews are primarily from Middle Eastern and North African countries).
Answer: With the support of Aryeh Deri, the most powerful Mizrahi politician and Rabbi Ovadia Yosef the most power Mizrahi rabbinical leader.
Who is Aryeh Deri?
Born in Morocco in February 1959 to a well to do Mizrahi family heavily influenced by French culture.
His family is traditional but not orthodox.
From the age of 5 until the age of 9, Aryeh studies in a Moroccan Jewish school that’s a mixture of secular and orthodox curriculum.
His family makes ‘Aliyah‘ (immigrating to Israel) in 1968. They settle in the coastal city of Bat Yam, just south of Tel Aviv.
Aryeh studies in several orthodox schools including Porat Yosef, a leading Sephardic Yeshiva in Jerusalem
In 1976 and until receiving his rabbinical ordination, Aryeh is a student at the Hebron Yeshiva in the West Bank.
June 1986, at the age of 27, he serves a total of three months in the Israel Defense Force (IDF).
Two years prior in 1984, Deri is already steeped within the newly created ‘Shas‘ Political Party. He’s being groomed for a career in politics.
Shas, a Mizrahi political party founded by Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, former Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel
Ovadia Yosef was born in Ottoman Iraq, Baghdad in September 1920.
At the age of four, during the British Mandate, the family immigrates to Jerusalem.
His father runs a grocery store in a religious neighborhood.
As with many Jewish Jerusalemites of that era, the family is poor. Ovadia, like many kids, works.
He studies at a religious school in the Bukharim Quarter of Jerusalem.
Bukharim Jews are primarily from present-day Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Central Asia and the Caucasus Mountains. Their mother tongue is Bukarian, a dialect related to the Persian language. Jews also spoke Bukhori, a mixture of Bukarian and Hebrew. Bukharan Jews
Ovadia’s rabbinical teachers recognize his exceptional abilities. His literary career begins at the age of 9.
In 1933, the ‘Hakham‘ (wise sage) Saqa Hussein, a revered Ottoman Iraqi-born rabbinical teacher convinces Ovadia’s father to let the young teenager study full-time at the Porat Yosef Yeshiva.
By 1937, rabbis are asking Ovadia to give daily discourses on portions of Hebraic texts.
At the age of 20, Yosef receives his rabbinical ordination.
Rabbi Ovadia Yosef had a long and remarkable journey through the world of rabbinical studies, teaching and the rabbinical courts. Through decades he receives praise by many of the most noted rabbinical leaders and scholars of the time, including the grandfather of President Isaac Herzog, Rabbi Yitzchak HaLevi Herzog.
Although laced with controversy, in 1973 Ovadia was elected Chief Sephardic Rabbi of Israel.
He will hold that position for the next 10 years.
Shas, embedded in Haredi tradition
in response to what Ovadia felt was a lack of representation of the Sephardic community within the Ashkenazi controlled Israeli government, the former Chief Rabbi founded the political party Shas.
The party, now the fourth largest in Israel, first started out as a small ethnic based group of Haredi, Sephardic men.
It’s important to understand the meaning of Haredi Judaism.
Regardless of origins and ancestry, the Haredim are characterized by their strict adherence to Jewish law and its traditions. This includes the writings and interpretations of rabbinical scholars throughout centuries of Jewish history.
Although the large majority of Mizrahim and Shas members are neither religious or ultra-orthodox, they are by nature traditional and highly respectful of the rabbinical community.
Haredi male dominated communities believe their religious methods represent the true and most pure and authentic form of Judaism. For more basic information on the Haredim check out this link Haredim from Wikipedia
Ovadia Yosef and Aryeh Deri, ‘Restoring the Crown to its Glory’
Between 1984 until his death in 2013, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef was the driving force behind Shas. He was a symbol of leadership for tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of Mizrahim.
Under Ovadia’s leadership and with the well groomed, handsome young politician, Aryeh Deri, Shas grew in numbers and power.
On several occasions, when either the left or right wing larger parties needed to solidify a coalition, Shas under the chairmanship of Deri played the role of ‘King Maker.’
(Deri actually served as Prime Minster Yitzchak Rabin’s Minister of the Interior during peace negotiations, known as the Oslo Accords) On The Ground, Israel, Observations on Clinton, Rabin, King Hussein, A Lost Opportunity
Deri, a master of negotiation and extortion always got what he wanted as the Mizrahi community cheered him on.
But behind the scenes, the leader of Shas was already being investigated.
Deri, a convicted criminal, tenaciously never gives up
- 1990 investigation against Deri for various crimes related to corruption begins
- 1999 Deri is convicted of bribery, fraud and breach of public trust
- The court determines he committed crimes involving moral turpitude
- Deri is sentenced to four years in prison and pays a fine of 250,000 NIS
- Time off for good behavior, Deri only served 2 years
- 2003 Deri’s second criminal trial begins
- He’s accused of transferring funds from the Interior Ministry to Haredi organizations with ties to Shas
- Deri’s convicted of breach of trust for transferring 400,000 NIS to organizations run by his brother
- Acquitted on four additional charges, Deri receives a 3-month suspended sentence, and a fine of 10,000NIS
Deri returns to politics in 2012 under the approval of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef. One year later, he’s appointed chairman of Shas.
- 2016, the Attorney General opens a criminal investigation on suspicion of profiting from illegal real estate transactions
- 2018, Police recommend indicting Deri for fraud, breach of trust, tax evasion and money laundering
- 2020 he’s accused of securing top jobs for members of his immediate family Deri & His Family
- 2021 a plea deal is agreed upon
- Deri admits to the charges, resigns from the Knesset and pays a fine of 180,000NIS
- Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court approves the deal and adds 12 months probation
Judge Shmuel Herbst states, “The defendant, a public figure for many years now voluntarily withdraws from engaging in public affairs.” Further information on Deri’s history check out this link Aryeh Deri
The next day, Deri is appointed advisor to the Shas party in the Knesset.
Just before the November 2022 election, Deri is once again appointed head of the Shas list.
The party wins 11 seats and immediately joins the newly created Haredi, ultra-conservative, religious Zionist, sexist, racist, homophobic Netanyahu coalition.
With King Bibi at the helm, Deri is appointed Vice Prime Minister, Minister of the Interior plus Minister of Health.
But the Deri’s victory is short-lived.
The Supreme Court, currently the target of Bibi’s Judiciary Overhaul, ruled on January 18th, 2023, that Deri failed to honor his plea agreement in which he promised to leave political life.
10 Supreme Court justices support the ruling, with one judge dissenting.
The Supreme Court justices declare that Deri’s appointment is “unreasonable in the extreme” due to his multiple convictions for corruption charges. They also cite “the position Deri presented to the Magistrate’s Court that convicted him of these charges, in which he said he was quitting politics, and his conduct thereafter.”
As a consequence, in accordance with the Supreme Court’s ruling, Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu is required to dismiss Deri, who was sworn in with the rest of the government on December 29, 2022.
The Judiciary Overhaul is primarily focused on getting Aryeh Deri back in politics, punishing the Supreme Court by ripping away their powers of check and balances over the legislative body and of course to keep Bibi out of jail. Israel’s Democracy is Dying as Bibi Gleefully Dances Around the Open Grave
to be continued…
The Art of Deception, How Netanyahu Continues to Rule, Part Two
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