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Series of scandals rocks Israeli Orthodox Zionism

The gay-hate speech of Rabbi Yigal Levenstein, past statements by IDF Chief Rabbi Eyal Karim and the indictment of Gen. Ofek Buchris on alleged rape must drive Orthodox Zionism to do some serious soul-searching.

Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men walk behind Israeli soldiers at the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City February 22, 2012. The Israeli Defence Force (IDF) has always been a 'Jewish' army. Its rations are kosher, its chaplains are rabbis, and it operates - with the exception of wartime - around the festival calendar. It has never drafted soldiers from Israel's 20-percent Arab minority. But its Jewish identity has always been more cultural than religious. IDF personnel data suggests
Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men walk behind Israeli soldiers at the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City Feb. 22, 2012. — REUTERS/Baz Ratner

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