British Jews concerned by Western Wall, conversion
LONDON - British Jews are concerned about the Israeli government’s stance on the egalitarian prayer space at the Western Wall and about moves to limit recognition of Jewish conversions done abroad, a number of communal leaders told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday morning.
They spoke with the Post in advance of a meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Savoy Hotel in London where he had been staying.
“We want to see fairness between different strands of Judaism,” UK Board of Jewish Deputies President Jonathan Arkush said.
Senior Reform Rabbi Laura Janner-Klausner said she was also troubled by racism within Israeli society and the government’s support for anti-democratic legislation. She explained that so far, Netanyahu has not appeared to pay heed to their concerns on these issues.
Netanyahu has said that he is the leader of the Jewish world Janner-Klausner pointed out. “If he is the leader of the Jewish world, he needs to listen to the Jewish world,” she said.
Danny Rich, a Senior Rabbi of Liberal Judaism, said the meeting was short and he did not get a chance to substantively raise his concerns on these issues.
Arkush said that to the extent that some of their concerns did come up in a roundabout way, Netanyahu responded by explaining that Israel was a democracy.
“It was a very warm, substantive and open meeting,” Arkush told the Post.
“We British Jews are incredibly proud of the part that Britain and indeed our community played in the creating and issuing of the Balfour Declaration, which was a critical milestone,” Arkush said.
This community is a very strong Zionist community, he said, and is honored by Netanyahu’s visit for such an historic occasion.
“The world’s most important imperial and military power, as Great Britain was then, was declaring that it supported the establishment of a Jewish homeland in Palestine – as it was then called,” he said. “Without that declaration, it’s unlikely the State of Israel would have been created.”
Dozens of events have been held, including last Thursday’s gala dinner at Lancaster House, with Netanyahu and British Prime Minister Theresa May present, Arkush said.
The government’s decision to mark the centenary with pride is significant and overrides the voices who have objected to it, the board president said.
May is a “genuine friend” of Israel, he said, and her speech, particularly her strong condemnation of anti-Semitism, was very well received.
The British government has been strongly supportive of Israel, Arkush said. This includes its refusal to unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state.