It was a week of mourning for the Haredi press. The newspaper pages were covered in blood and black - screaming the cry of revenge.
""Avenge the blood of your servants," "They were taken abducted," "Earth, do not cover their blood," "The voice of the blood of our brothers cries out.".
But alongside the great outcry, there were also questions and doubts. About the "unanswered call", that chilling call that Gil-Ad Sha'ar dared to make in his last moments, a call that was handled carelessly. This time, the media did not skip a single omission - from that call, to the way the recordings were played to the parents (were they deliberately distorted so that they would sound unclear?) and ending with the illusion into which an entire country was led, even though military officials already knew what they knew.
The army searched, the citizens found - was the highlight. The news pages of the Friday dailies, the more up-to-date ones, had already told about the rockets in the south, the escalation, and Netanyahu's ultimatum. "Israel sends a strong message," were the words, which, against the backdrop of Israeli hesitation in the face of the ongoing rocket fire, including at the capital of the Negev, seemed a little funny.
The political side was not absent either. The Haredi media has fairly balanced its criticism of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, mentioning both sides – on the one hand, he is balanced, responsible, and does not get into fights; on the other hand, say the right-wingers – he is fearful, hesitant, he has never launched a large-scale operation, he is only great at making bombastic promises.
This time there was almost agreement among the journalists. The same goes for the fact that Naftali Bennett escalates his statements for political reasons, and that Avigdor Lieberman is strong mainly with words 'outside', while inside the cabinet room he is quite silent, even introverted.
And yes, there was also the understanding, across issues and newspapers, about the fact that the elections - either-or-not are approaching. Alongside the plethora of evidence for this, the debate revolved only around the date - this coming winter - or the one after it. The upcoming budget will create the biggest problems, or the one after it.
For the Haredim, for those who haven't yet understood, the anticipation for the next elections is very keen. It's a longing that grows stronger every day. In fact, since the day the government was established - the Haredi government of troubles.
What's great about Yated Ne'eman (or not, depending on who you ask, as some people don't look for a Sefer Haskhapa in a newspaper) is the spiritual context they manage to create for every event.
The kidnapping incident, just for example.
Alongside an exhaustive article detailing the reactions (one big hypocrisy) around the world, in the editorial the author explains how European countries have become alienated from the suffering of mothers, after all, only not long ago they called on their citizens to have no contact with the settlements and their products.
""More than two weeks ago, the clock stopped in three houses, and life there was divided into before and after. It didn't even send a shiver through the bodies of the embittered diplomats of the UN Human Rights Council.".
And why? Listen to the explanation.
The Jewish people are "a people who will dwell alone," and "the malicious government that has taken the reins of power in the land does not understand... The government whose spiritual blindness covers its eyes, which has harmed 'How good is the tent of Jacob' and is still trying to exclude Torah students and harm the wheat, is walking safely into the arms of disaster.".
Every word, by the way, is in stone. Is this appropriate for the timing of the week of mourning and mourning? That's another question. By the way, I would also save the article explaining that "Jerusalem is not for sale," while mentioning the exploits of Rabbi Aryeh Stern, for a later date. A little sensitivity wouldn't hurt...
The newspapers all put a lot of effort into conveying the sense of mourning. It was both striking and overwhelming. Perhaps that is precisely why I was disappointed by the anemic cover of a community newspaper - "A Rolling Barrel of Explosives" - as if that was the theme of the week. Only in a smaller version, on the very side, appeared the words "God will raise up their blood" with the pictures of the three.
Compare with the 'Family' newspaper, and definitely be disappointed with 'In the Community'.
The family spread "Revenge for the Blood of Your Servants" in huge quantities, in red and black on white, including several chilling articles in the news booklet, alongside a heart-wrenching field report in the magazine.
On the magazine's cover page, across the entire page, appeared the touching words: "Suddenly a scream was heard - a human body was discovered and our hearts skipped a beat - we still didn't think it was the worst of it. But then we discovered the rest of the dead. The spectacle was terrible. We realized we had reached the end of the story.".
What really bothered me was the ad at the bottom of the heart-warming front page of Family News: an ad about "the recipe for a dream vacation." Isn't it possible to show a little sensitivity during such a difficult week?
At least the community's news pamphlet contained a picture of Gideon Sa'ar. Not that politics at the bottom of the 'Shar' Abel' page is sensitivity at its best, but at least Sa'ar is not a recipe for a dream vacation...
The Haredi press, for the most part, played on the right side of the field. After all, it's no secret that on a typical weekday, newspapers like Hamodia or Hamveshar lean to the right - while Yated leans to the left. It's always been that way. The 'Degel HaTorah' movement leaned to the left. There are still those who remember the booklet 'Peace Document' produced by the number one in the movement, Rabbi Avraham Ravitz, the late, together with... Yossi Beilin.
In truth, the Shas movement has always had a left-leaning stance. This was the Torah view of the late Rabbi Yosef, but events over the past few years have changed his worldview on the subject. It is reasonable to assume that under the leadership of Aryeh Deri, the party will return to its left-leaning stance, and do not be impressed by such and such visits to the Chabad tent on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the passing of the late Rebbe.
And perhaps precisely because of all this, I was surprised to discover several distinctly right-wing sentences in Yated's field report this week. First, let me clarify that I am a huge fan of the field reports that the newspaper has begun incorporating into its Yated This Week supplement. It is certainly a refreshing change, and I have even complimented it more than once. However, this time I was surprised by the right-wing nuances that were blown from the pages.
Read - and see for yourself:
""Starting from this hour and for the next few days, they will make sure to publish a statement with a committee that such a brutal murder will be met with a response in the form of establishing a new outpost.".
""Two such have already become a fait accompli – until further notice, or until the moment the cry of 'Hamas' comes out of the mouths of the beautiful souls on the left side of the map.".
""Further from here, on the hill above, a few hundred meters from the intersection, in a place that will from this hour be called 'Giv'at Oz and Gaon' (after the three - Gilad, Eyal and Naftali) a real plot of land is being occupied at this very moment, which is probably so powerful to those collaborators from the left side, they will make sure that when the Sabbath is over, the matter will resonate in all media outlets.".
""What started here a few hours ago as an act of mourning and crying will turn into an outpost in the coming days.".
Let the newspaper's spiritual critics try to visit the residence of the Grand Rabbi Steinman and tell him about those outposts that were built in response to the murder of the kidnapped. Then let them tell us all what his reaction was. A small guess: far from the admiration that emerges from the article.
Which means that even a field report needs research.
I loved the field report from 'Bakhilah', which sent a reporter to Jordan to survey the greenhouses that were set up there in preparation for the upcoming Shabbat year, to provide Gush Katif-style vegetables.
But what? A similar article appeared in a large part of the Haredi press a month ago. So what's the point?
And maybe they will claim, as a woman who is a "subscriber to Peles" claimed this week in a conversation with a fan marketing company: "We only bring Peles into our homes, no other newspaper comes in.".
Does Bakhila believe that there are homes that "no other newspaper except Bakhila" enters, so that they could not be exposed to the greenhouses in Jordan? For its editors, solutions.
I really liked the family investigation into summer camps. How much does it cost, how much will a family with so-and-so boys and girls pay, the fees for private camps, compared to institutional ones.
But the most interesting point was at the end. When the reporter asked the Ministry of Education spokeswoman why there is no price control, she replied with this:
""The Ministry of Education calls on all non-formal education schools to join state schools and benefit from the 'Great Holiday Schools' programs, which significantly ease the financial burden"...
Did you understand? – I had difficulty.
We are Haredim, we are anxious about the education of our children, we want 'our' education, in the purity of holiness, without threats of influence from 'friendships' of one kind or another - and yet, as taxpayers and as citizens with equal rights in the State of Israel, we want to receive summer camps for our children, because their blood is no less red than the children of our neighbors in the neighboring city.
Attention, Ministry of Education spokespersons.
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