Finance Minister Avigdor Liberman (Yisrael Beytenu) on Monday blamed the rise in the cost of living on the haredi community. "The fact that 50% of the haredi community does not participate in the work force is a central reason for the cost of living," Liberman claimed. Haredi women almost all work, but many haredi men study in yeshiva long-term. MK Moshe Gafni (United Torah Judaism) quickly responded, saying, "The harsh statements about the cost of living made by Liberman during a party meeting are not even worthy of a response. His words should be sent in a wheelbarrow to a garbage dump." Related articles: 'Bring back hostages, eliminate October 7 terrorists' MK Ayman Odeh compares hostages to terrorists 'Stop making excuses, evacuate Khan al-Ahmar' 'We need to deal the Houthis a crushing blow' The "wheelbarrow to the garbage dump" statement was an echo of a statement made by Liberman in early 2021 , when he told Channel 12 News , "I will send the haredim, together with [then-Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu, in one wheelbarrow to a garbage dump." Liberman later claimed that his statement was misunderstood, telling the Ofira & Berkovic program, which airs on Channel 12 , "The statement was misunderstood, there was no intention here. It was perhaps not the most successful statement, but so be it."
