Israel’s governing coalition is considering a new bill that would finally tighten the eligibility for citizenship under the Law of Return – limiting it to those who are actually Jewish according to halacha, as the Rebbe fought for over many years.
By Anash.org reporter
Israel’s governing coalition is considering a new bill that would finally tighten the eligibility for citizenship under the Law of Return – limiting it to those who are actually Jewish according to halacha, as the Rebbe fought for over many years.
The bill seeks to eliminate the so-called “grandchild clause,” which currently allows individuals with at least one Jewish grandparent to receive automatic citizenship – even if they are not Jewish by halachic standards. Since this clause was added in 5730 (1970), an estimated 500,000 people have immigrated to Israel under this provision.
In response to the 1970 amendment, the Rebbe launched a global campaign warning that removing halachic standards from the Law of Return would “breach the gates of the Jewish people” – flooding the country with non-Jews falsely registered as Jews. The Rebbe cautioned that this would lead to growing pressure to convert them en masse, and ultimately result in widespread intermarriage, r”l.
The bill will be discussed Sunday by the Ministerial Committee on Legislation, which decides whether the government will support proposed laws. If approved, it will move forward to the Knesset with official backing from Prime Minister Netanyahu’s coalition – dramatically increasing its chances of passing.
The bill’s author, Avi Maoz of the Noam party, left the coalition several months ago, citing the government’s failure to promote a strong frum and nationalist agenda. The committee is also set to review another bill by Maoz that would ban discussion of LGBTQ issues in classrooms.
“In its current form, the Law of Return allows even the grandson of a Jew to receive immigrant status and rights, even if he himself – and sometimes even his parents – are no longer Jewish,” states the explanatory note attached to Maoz’s bill. “This situation means that the law is being exploited by many who have severed all ties with the Jewish people and its traditions, and in effect empties the law of its original intention, which was to open the country’s gates to the Jews of the Diaspora.”
Similar versions of this bill have been introduced in recent years by other members of Netanyahu’s government, including Likud MK Shlomo Karhi, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, and MK Simcha Rothman.
Finally!