Major General (res.) Amidror
Major General (res.) AmidrorIsrael news photo

The newly appointed National Security Adviser, from the national religious camp, said at the 8th annual Jerusalem Conference Tuesday that rabbis should not encourage their students to disobey IDF orders for expelling Jews from their homes.

Brigadier General (Res.) Yaakov Amidror urged rabbis to retract previous declarations to soldiers that following orders to remove Jew from their homes anywhere in Israel violates principles of the Torah.

Amidror, who warned the government against the expulsions of Jews from Gaza and parts of northern Samaria when he was IDF Intelligence Chief in 2005, said that encouraging the refusal orders is “irresponsible.” He explained that rabbis backing refusal of orders do not take into account the consequence of their directive to their students serving in the army.

The Jerusalem Conference’s theme this year is “Are We Facing a New Middle East.” The conference kicked off last night with discussion on uniting the city of Jerusalem. Among the speakers were former Cabinet minster Natan Sharansky, now chairman of the Jewish Agency, and Republican U.S. Senator Sam Brownback.

Among the topics to be discussed Tuesday and Wednesday are American policy towards Israel and the Middle East, economic sanctions on Iran and the “peace process.”

Speakers include Democratic Congressman Eliot Engel, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Sub-Committee on the Western Hemisphere; National Union Knesset Members Aryeh Eldad and Uri Ariel; Jewish Home (HaBayit HaYehudit) chairman Rabbi/Dr. Daniel Hershkowitz as well as his party MK Zevulun Orlev; Opposition leader Tzipi Livni, head of the Kadima party; and Deputy Prime Minister Silvan Shalom, a senior Likud party member and MK.

The Jerusalem Conference describes itself as being “dedicated to the promotion of Jewish heritage and values and to Israel’s future as a viable, modern, democratic and Jewish state."