The Jewish Home party will only agree to run together with the Otzma Yehudit party again if Baruch Marzel is not included among the list of candidates, Education Minister Rabbi Rafi Peretz reportedly said Thursday, Otzma Yehudit ran on a joint ticket together with the United Right, which included the Jewish Home and National Union factions, during the last elections in April. The controversial joint run was the result of pressure on the parties by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to ensure that no right-wing votes would be lost. As part of the deal between the parties, Otzma Yehudit candidates Dr. Michael Ben-Ari and Itamar Ben Gvir were given realistic spots on the United Right's list of candidates. Ben Ari's candidacy was disqualified by the High Court of Justice in March. Otzma Yehudit broke from the United Right last month after elections were announced for September. According to Ynet, Otzma Yehudit is demanding that it receive two realistic slots again, one for Ben Gvir and another for Baruch Marzel in place of Ben-Ari. Marzel, a resident of Hevron, served as the parliamentary aide of the late Rabbi Meir Kahane during Kahane's term as a Knesset Member from 1984 to 1988, and was an activist in the banned Kach party. He has called for the expulsion of all "enemies" of the Jewish people, while allowing Arabs who pledge loyalty to the State of Israel to remain. According to Yediot Ahronot, Rabbi Peretz has rejected the demands of Otzma Yehudit, and declared that under no circumstances would he run together with Marzel. He has also reportedly ruled out running with Otzma Yehudit candidate Bentzi Gopstein, the leader of the Lehava anti-assimilation organization. Otzma Yehudit has threatened to run for the Knesset on an independent ticket in the upcoming elections if no agreement can be reached with the United Right.
