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By Elizabeth Berney, Esq.
The Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) praises the 13 delegates and three alternates on the ZOA Coalition slate who represented the ZOA Coalition at the 2023 extraordinary World Zionist Congress (WZC) meetings in Jerusalem from April 19-21. We are so proud of all our ZOA Coalition representatives for fighting for our positions strongly, intelligently and with dignity under incredibly trying circumstances. Our ZOA Coalition representatives at the WZC included leaders of ZOA, Aish HaTorah, the Russian-Jewish community and organizations, the Persian-Jewish community, the Syrian-Jewish community, One Israel Fund, Students Supporting Israel, Young Jewish Conservatives, Amariah, and more. Special kudos to ZOA Coalition delegate and Aish HaTorah leader Rabbi Steven Burg, who chaired the difficult Thursday evening and Friday morning plenary with tremendous grace while being shouted at by unruly leftists, one of whom ran up on stage and physically pushed Rabbi Burg. And special thanks to every ZOA Coalition slate member and voter. You gave us the strength to deal with a lot of issues, and were at the WZC in spirit.
Unfortunately, the 2023 WZC meetings and subsequent Jewish Agency meetings in Tel Aviv were marred by extremist left-wingers’ disruptions and wildly inappropriate behavior, including: shouting down speakers; trying to break into a private meeting with Knesset Constitution Committee Chair Simcha Rothman; banging on doors; walking out of the plenary; refusing to allow committee votes on proposed ZOA Coalition amendments; throwing my phone on the floor; the attack on Rabbi Burg; and voting fraud.
These left wing disruptions were the worst behavior we’ve ever seen at a World Zionist Congress. It was particularly shameful because Theodor Herzl – the founder of the World Zionist Congress in 1897, stressed the importance of dignified proceedings. People should act respectfully towards their fellow delegates, even while expressing their differing opinions.
The left wing disrupters also seemed to forget the life-and-death problems Israel faces, even though the same week was rocked by ever-present Palestinian Arab anti-Jewish terror. On the day that I arrived in Israel (Tuesday, April 18), Greater Philadelphia ZOA President Kevin Ross and I attended the shiva at Rabbi Dee’s home in Efrat, along with scores of people and soldiers from throughout Israel. Heartbreakingly, Rabbi Dee’s wife Lucy and his daughters Maia and Rina were brutally murdered by Arab terrorists. A major terror attack also occurred at the Machane Yehuda market during the trip. And my trip home was on Yom Hazikaron.
Here is some of what occurred at the WZC and Jewish Agency:
- The Chair of WZC Committee #6, meeting on the first day of the WZC (Wednesday), Arzenu (worldwide Reform Movement) Chair Lea Mühlstein – who chaired Committee #6 - refused to allow a vote on an amendment proposed by a ZOA Coalition member. Mühlstein also did the same thing during previous World Zionist Congresses. Our amendments were also not voted on elsewhere. Also, the left-winger running committee selection refused to put several of our delegates on the correct committees.
- During the World Likud faction meeting on the second day of the WZC (Thursday), left-wingers kept screaming right outside the door so loudly that we could barely hear one another speak. Ironically, when this racket started, World Likud leaders were telling everyone to not react to provocations from the Left.
- Left wing resolutions (which we fought against) were despicably (and sometimes deceptively) designed to remove religious Jews who love Israel from the World Zionist Congress; to oppose the will of the Israeli people and their democratically-elected government; and to increase unfair quotas. Virtually all of these resolutions also violated the WZC’s rule that resolutions this year could only be on the topic of Israel’s 75th anniversary.
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