National Union (Israel)
Encyclopedia
The National Union is an alliance of nationalist political parties in Israel
. In the 2009 elections
the National Union consisted of four parties: Moledet
, Hatikva
, Eretz Yisrael Shelanu
, and Tkuma.
party, Yisrael Beiteinu.
After Ariel Sharon
won the 2001 Prime Ministerial elections, National Union was brought into the National Unity Government
and party leader Rehavam Zeevi
was appointed Minister of Tourism, with Yisrael Beiteinu leader Avigdor Lieberman becoming Minister of National Infrastructure. When Zeevi was assassinated on 17 October 2001, Binyamin Elon
of Moledet took his ministerial position, and Lieberman became head of the National Union.
Herut ran independently in the 2003 elections and did not pass the barrier. The National Union party won seven seats and was included in Ariel Sharon's coalition alongside Likud
, Shinui
, the National Religious Party
and Yisrael BaAliyah. Elon and Lieberman were appointed Minister of Tourism and Minister of Transportation respectively.
The National Union opposed the withdrawal from the Gaza Strip
. Sharon sacked ministers Elon and Lieberman, and the National Union left the coalition (Elon attempted to avoid sacking by going into hiding, but ultimately failed).
However, the National Union was then bolstered by the addition of the Renewed Religious National Zionist Party (later renamed Ahi), which had been formed by NRP dissidents opposed to the Gaza withdrawal after the NRP had decided to remain in the coalition. After withdrawal, the National Union adopted orange as its symbol, the color having been used by anti-disengagement protesters.
In 2005 Yisrael Beiteinu left the National Union to run independently in the 2006 elections. At the last minute the National Religious Party decided to form a joint list with National Union called National Union - NRP. The combined list adopted more social policies and won the support of the chief rabbis of the Religious Zionism
(such as Rabbi Abraham Shapira), and the Union of Handicapped (thanks to the NRP's pro-handicapped legislation). The joint list used the slogan New Right Rising (Hebrew: ימין חדש עולה, Yamin Hadash Oleh) and won nine seats, of which the National Union took six.
In 2008, in anticipation of the 2009 elections, the National Union and NRP formally unified into a single party, called the Jewish Home
. This was intended to unify their political sector and present the public with a new face for the religious Zionist movement. The Jewish Home was to be a single party, rather than a list of separate parties, each with its own agenda and independent leadership. Professor Daniel Hershkovitz was picked to head the newly formed party. However, MK Aryeh Eldad left to form his own list, Hatikva, while MKs Effi Eitam
and Yitzhak Levy
(formerly of Ahi) re-established Ahi, which later merged into Likud
. When the Jewish Home announced its candidate list for the elections, five of the top six slots went to ex-NRP members, with only MK Uri Ariel
, formerly of Tkuma, in the top six.
The remaining ex-Moledet members broke off, re-established their party, and allied with MK Eldad's Hatikva, reviving the National Union name. Elon stated that he would not seek reelection and American immigrant Uri Bank took his place on the Jewish Home list. The split from Jewish Home grew, and polls indicated Hatikva could win three seats. Eretz Yisrael Shelanu also joined the National Union, with member Michael Ben-Ari
given fourth spot on the alliance's list. While these issues were being negotiated, Uri Ariel also left Jewish Home and rejoined the National Union list, leaving Jewish Home as little more than a renamed NRP.
of all the Land of Israel
, advocates the use of more military power in the war on terror
and harsher measures against Palestinian terrorism. It rejects all current Oslo-based
peace efforts — which it sees as dangerous to Israel and rejects the notion of a Palestinian state. The party instead advocates cantons of self rule for the Arabs in the West Bank
whose leadership would be local and not imported. It is heavily molded by the doctrine of Ya'akov Katz
and Rabbi Benny Elon, the former leader of Moledet
. It also supports a Torah-constituted multi-ethnic, multi-diverse theonomic democratic Jewish State
under the banner of the Israel
i Flag
.
is critical for sustaining and strengthening Israel and is at the core of the Zionism. It wants to encourage aliyah and facilitate the absorption of olim. The party believes the State of Israel should support Jewish education in order to strengthen relations with the Jewish diaspora
, while the Diaspora should encourage aliyah. The party wants to take full advantage of the potential in aliyah from around the world and specifically the aliyah from Western nations and the former Soviet Union. It supports continuing government and Jewish Agency programs that encourage aliyah from France
, Argentina
and South Africa
. Further, it wants to create long-term programs to help integrate Ethiopian Jewish immigrants better. It also wants to involve immigrants in developing such programs. The party wants more Jewish education for prospective immigrants to help preserve the Jewish nature of Israel. Finally, the party wants to assist Jewish converts in moving to Israel.
where embassies are presently located. In addition, the party seeks guarantees of open access to the holy places to all religions, in particular the right of every Jew to pray on the Temple Mount
. Further, the party wants more to be done about illegal construction by Arabs in Jerusalem and surrounding areas.
over the Supreme Court of Israel
. The party supports fairness and credibility in a clean administration and aspires to be an example of truth, humility, and personal and public integrity. The party will work to prevent moral corruption in Israeli public life by ensuring improved transparency and preventing conflicts of interest among elected officials.
, Wye River Memorandum
, and Hebron agreements, after the failure of the Camp David Accord, the lives lost in the Oslo War and the Second Lebanon war, and after the rise of Hamas
to power in the Palestinian Authority, the party wants to declare all agreements with the PA as null and void. In addition, it wants to end peace agreements with all of its neighbors, but not at the price of security. The party wants to solidify the national camp around a realistic regional peace plan. The party condemns the Gaza disengagement plan and opposes further uprooting of Jewish communities and surrender of parts of the Land of Israel in any future Israeli government with the party.
instead of West Bank
.
The party considers settling the land to be an expression of the fulfillment of Zionism and insists on the right of Jews to settle in all parts of the Land of Israel. It ensures a Jewish "hold on the land, contributes to the distribution of the population, and accomplishes the social revolution of the Jewish people that ties it to its homeland and makes it productive." The party supports settling land for security, economics, and social wellbeing, and supports creating a parliamentary settlement committee to expand settlements in sparsely settled regions of the country. The part wants responsibility for settlements to be transferred from the Defense Ministry to the local councils
. The party wants to promote Jewish labor in agriculture. Residents in developing towns should have their educational systems and economic enterprises enhanced to improve their standard of living, making them more attractive to potential new residents, the younger generation, and those who grew up there.
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. In the 2009 elections
Israeli legislative election, 2009
Elections for the 18th Knesset were held in Israel on 10 February 2009. These elections became necessary due to the resignation of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert as leader of the Kadima party, and the failure of his successor, Tzipi Livni, to form a coalition government...
the National Union consisted of four parties: Moledet
Moledet
Moledet is a small right-wing political party in Israel. It advocates the notion of encouraging voluntary population transfer of the Arab population of the West Bank. Moledet was founded in 1988 by Rehavam Ze'evi, who headed it until his assassination by members of the PFLP in 2001, after which...
, Hatikva
Hatikva (political party)
Hatikva is a minor political party in Israel. A secular right-wing party, it is headed by Aryeh Eldad, and forms one of the factions of the National Union alliance.Formed in late 2007, it was officially registered on 9 December 2007...
, Eretz Yisrael Shelanu
Eretz Yisrael Shelanu
Eretz Yisrael Shelanu is a far-right religious party in Israel. Founded by Chabad Rabbi Shalom Dov Wolpo and Baruch Marzel on 11 November, 2008 it seeks to prevent both the creation of a Palestinian state as well as the dismantling of Israeli settlements in the West Bank.In 2008, in anticipation...
, and Tkuma.
Background
The National Union was formed in 1999 to contest the elections of that year as an alliance between Moledet, Tkuma and Herut – The National Movement, winning four seats. In 2001 the party's support was almost doubled by the addition of the predominantly Russian-immigrantRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
party, Yisrael Beiteinu.
After Ariel Sharon
Ariel Sharon
Ariel Sharon is an Israeli statesman and retired general, who served as Israel’s 11th Prime Minister. He has been in a permanent vegetative state since suffering a stroke on 4 January 2006....
won the 2001 Prime Ministerial elections, National Union was brought into the National Unity Government
National unity government
A national unity government, government of national unity, or national union government is a broad coalition government consisting of all parties in the legislature, usually formed during a time of war or other national emergency.- Canada :During World War I the Conservative government of Sir...
and party leader Rehavam Zeevi
Rehavam Zeevi
' 20 June 1926 - 17 October 2001) was an Israeli general, politician, and historian who founded the right-wing nationalist Moledet party, mainly advocating population transfer....
was appointed Minister of Tourism, with Yisrael Beiteinu leader Avigdor Lieberman becoming Minister of National Infrastructure. When Zeevi was assassinated on 17 October 2001, Binyamin Elon
Binyamin Elon
Rabbi Binyamin "Benny" Elon is an Israeli politician who served as a member of the Knesset for Moledet and the National Union between 1996 and 2009. A ninth-generation Jerusalemite, Elon has lived in Beit El, an Israeli settlement in the West Bank for the last twenty years...
of Moledet took his ministerial position, and Lieberman became head of the National Union.
Herut ran independently in the 2003 elections and did not pass the barrier. The National Union party won seven seats and was included in Ariel Sharon's coalition alongside Likud
Likud
Likud is the major center-right political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin in an alliance with several right-wing and liberal parties. Likud's victory in the 1977 elections was a major turning point in the country's political history, marking the first time the left had...
, Shinui
Shinui
Shinui is a Zionist, secular and anti-clerical free market liberal party and political movement in Israel. The party twice became the third largest in the Knesset, but both occasions were followed by a split and collapse; in 1977 the party won 15 seats as part of the Democratic Movement for...
, the National Religious Party
National Religious Party
The National Religious Party ) was a political party in Israel representing the religious Zionist movement. Formed in 1956, at the time of its dissolution in 2008, it was the second oldest surviving party in the country after Agudat Yisrael, and was part of every government coalition until 1992...
and Yisrael BaAliyah. Elon and Lieberman were appointed Minister of Tourism and Minister of Transportation respectively.
The National Union opposed the withdrawal from the Gaza Strip
Israel's unilateral disengagement plan
Israel's unilateral disengagement plan , also known as the "Disengagement plan", "Gaza expulsion plan", and "Hitnatkut", was a proposal by Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, adopted by the government on June 6, 2004 and enacted in August 2005, to evict all Israelis from the Gaza Strip and from...
. Sharon sacked ministers Elon and Lieberman, and the National Union left the coalition (Elon attempted to avoid sacking by going into hiding, but ultimately failed).
However, the National Union was then bolstered by the addition of the Renewed Religious National Zionist Party (later renamed Ahi), which had been formed by NRP dissidents opposed to the Gaza withdrawal after the NRP had decided to remain in the coalition. After withdrawal, the National Union adopted orange as its symbol, the color having been used by anti-disengagement protesters.
In 2005 Yisrael Beiteinu left the National Union to run independently in the 2006 elections. At the last minute the National Religious Party decided to form a joint list with National Union called National Union - NRP. The combined list adopted more social policies and won the support of the chief rabbis of the Religious Zionism
Religious Zionism
Religious Zionism is an ideology that combines Zionism and Jewish religious faith...
(such as Rabbi Abraham Shapira), and the Union of Handicapped (thanks to the NRP's pro-handicapped legislation). The joint list used the slogan New Right Rising (Hebrew: ימין חדש עולה, Yamin Hadash Oleh) and won nine seats, of which the National Union took six.
In 2008, in anticipation of the 2009 elections, the National Union and NRP formally unified into a single party, called the Jewish Home
The Jewish Home
-External links:*...
. This was intended to unify their political sector and present the public with a new face for the religious Zionist movement. The Jewish Home was to be a single party, rather than a list of separate parties, each with its own agenda and independent leadership. Professor Daniel Hershkovitz was picked to head the newly formed party. However, MK Aryeh Eldad left to form his own list, Hatikva, while MKs Effi Eitam
Effi Eitam
Efraim "Effi" Eitam is an Israeli politician. A former leader of the National Religious Party, he later led a breakaway faction, Ahi, which merged into Likud in 2009. He served as a member of the Knesset between 2003 and 2009.-Biography:...
and Yitzhak Levy
Yitzhak Levy
Rabbi Yitzhak Levy is an Israeli rabbi and politician who served as a member of the Knesset for the National Religious Party and the Ahi faction of the National Union between 1988 and 2009...
(formerly of Ahi) re-established Ahi, which later merged into Likud
Likud
Likud is the major center-right political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin in an alliance with several right-wing and liberal parties. Likud's victory in the 1977 elections was a major turning point in the country's political history, marking the first time the left had...
. When the Jewish Home announced its candidate list for the elections, five of the top six slots went to ex-NRP members, with only MK Uri Ariel
Uri Ariel
Uri Yehuda Ariel is an Israeli politician who current serves as a member of the Knesset for the National Union.-Biography:Born in Afula, Ariel served in a combat unit called Palsar 7 in the Israel Defense Forces and retired as a major...
, formerly of Tkuma, in the top six.
The remaining ex-Moledet members broke off, re-established their party, and allied with MK Eldad's Hatikva, reviving the National Union name. Elon stated that he would not seek reelection and American immigrant Uri Bank took his place on the Jewish Home list. The split from Jewish Home grew, and polls indicated Hatikva could win three seats. Eretz Yisrael Shelanu also joined the National Union, with member Michael Ben-Ari
Michael Ben-Ari
Michael Ben-Ari is an Israeli politician, and a current member of the Knesset for the National Union party. He is the first outspoken disciple of Rabbi Meir Kahane to be elected to the Knesset. He has a Ph.D in Land of Israel studies.-Biography:...
given fourth spot on the alliance's list. While these issues were being negotiated, Uri Ariel also left Jewish Home and rejoined the National Union list, leaving Jewish Home as little more than a renamed NRP.
Platform
The party has a joint platform, and in particular it supports the settlementIsraeli settlement
An Israeli settlement is a Jewish civilian community built on land that was captured by Israel from Jordan, Egypt, and Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War and is considered occupied territory by the international community. Such settlements currently exist in the West Bank...
of all the Land of Israel
Land of Israel
The Land of Israel is the Biblical name for the territory roughly corresponding to the area encompassed by the Southern Levant, also known as Canaan and Palestine, Promised Land and Holy Land. The belief that the area is a God-given homeland of the Jewish people is based on the narrative of the...
, advocates the use of more military power in the war on terror
War on Terrorism
The War on Terror is a term commonly applied to an international military campaign led by the United States and the United Kingdom with the support of other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as well as non-NATO countries...
and harsher measures against Palestinian terrorism. It rejects all current Oslo-based
Oslo Accords
The Oslo Accords, officially called the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements or Declaration of Principles , was an attempt to resolve the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli conflict...
peace efforts — which it sees as dangerous to Israel and rejects the notion of a Palestinian state. The party instead advocates cantons of self rule for the Arabs in the West Bank
West Bank
The West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
whose leadership would be local and not imported. It is heavily molded by the doctrine of Ya'akov Katz
Ya'akov Katz (politician born 1951)
Ya’akov Dov "Katzele" Katz is an Israeli politician. He currently leads the National Union party, for whom he is a member of the Knesset, and is also the Executive Director of Beit El yeshiva Center Institutions and Arutz Sheva....
and Rabbi Benny Elon, the former leader of Moledet
Moledet
Moledet is a small right-wing political party in Israel. It advocates the notion of encouraging voluntary population transfer of the Arab population of the West Bank. Moledet was founded in 1988 by Rehavam Ze'evi, who headed it until his assassination by members of the PFLP in 2001, after which...
. It also supports a Torah-constituted multi-ethnic, multi-diverse theonomic democratic Jewish State
Jewish state
A homeland for the Jewish people was an idea that rose to the fore in the 19th century in the wake of growing anti-Semitism and Jewish assimilation. Jewish emancipation in Europe paved the way for two ideological solutions to the Jewish Question: cultural assimilation, as envisaged by Moses...
under the banner of the Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i Flag
Flag
A flag is a piece of fabric with a distinctive design that is usually rectangular and used as a symbol, as a signaling device, or decoration. The term flag is also used to refer to the graphic design employed by a flag, or to its depiction in another medium.The first flags were used to assist...
.
Aliyah
The party believes aliyahAliyah
Aliyah is the immigration of Jews to the Land of Israel . It is a basic tenet of Zionist ideology. The opposite action, emigration from Israel, is referred to as yerida . The return to the Holy Land has been a Jewish aspiration since the Babylonian exile...
is critical for sustaining and strengthening Israel and is at the core of the Zionism. It wants to encourage aliyah and facilitate the absorption of olim. The party believes the State of Israel should support Jewish education in order to strengthen relations with the Jewish diaspora
Jewish diaspora
The Jewish diaspora is the English term used to describe the Galut גלות , or 'exile', of the Jews from the region of the Kingdom of Judah and Roman Iudaea and later emigration from wider Eretz Israel....
, while the Diaspora should encourage aliyah. The party wants to take full advantage of the potential in aliyah from around the world and specifically the aliyah from Western nations and the former Soviet Union. It supports continuing government and Jewish Agency programs that encourage aliyah from France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
and South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. Further, it wants to create long-term programs to help integrate Ethiopian Jewish immigrants better. It also wants to involve immigrants in developing such programs. The party wants more Jewish education for prospective immigrants to help preserve the Jewish nature of Israel. Finally, the party wants to assist Jewish converts in moving to Israel.
Environment
The party supports environmental preservation and wants to plant forests in the desert regions of Israel. It supports the preservation of water bodies and wants a zero tolerance policy against illegal dumping of hazardous industrial materials, toxic chemicals, and sewage. The party wants to secure the water resources of Israel and ensure that there are no foreign hostile disruptions. The party supports greater efficiency in the use of rainfall and the establishment of desalinization facilities. The party supports strong enforcement standards against polluters in order to raise the air quality in Israel. The party supports new building and zoning standards in densely populated areas that will "maximize space, protect the environment, increase efficiency and allow for state-of-the-art transit applications."Foreign policy
The party believes foreign policy should focus on safeguarding the State of Israel’s sovereignty while seeking peace with Arab countries based on the principle of “peace for peace”. In addition, they want to build and nurture positive relationships with the peoples and governments of other countries without relinquishing Israel’s security interests, freedom of action, and complete national independence. The party supports a strong alliance with the United States, but wants to decrease dependence on American financial aid, eventually ending it completely. The party wants to strengthen Israeli ties with African, Asian and European nations and to further its political and economic interests in both the East and West. Further, the party wants to convince more countries to support and cooperate with Israel, especially Russia, the former Soviet Union, and Eastern Europe. The party condemns the Arab boycott and wants it denounced in the international arena, with sanctions imposed on countries that support it.Healthcare
The party believes that Israeli citizens are entitled to the best possible healthcare at the lowest possible cost. The party supports regulating the placement cell phone towers to ensure the health of Israelis.Jerusalem
The party supports a united Jerusalem as the eternal capital of the Jewish people in the State of Israel. It wants uninterrupted Jewish building in all parts of Jerusalem to ensure the unity of the Israeli capital and the transfer to Jerusalem of all government offices, institutions, and public organizations and permitting diplomatic offices only in Jerusalem, rather than Tel AvivTel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
where embassies are presently located. In addition, the party seeks guarantees of open access to the holy places to all religions, in particular the right of every Jew to pray on the Temple Mount
Temple Mount
The Temple Mount, known in Hebrew as , and in Arabic as the Haram Ash-Sharif , is one of the most important religious sites in the Old City of Jerusalem. It has been used as a religious site for thousands of years...
. Further, the party wants more to be done about illegal construction by Arabs in Jerusalem and surrounding areas.
Judaism and Torah
The party wants to require that all political parties recognize that Israel is the state of the Jewish people. The party wants to safeguard Jewish character of the State by intensifying the study of the heritage of the Jewish people and its history. The party wants religious laws to be determined by wide consensus, rather than patronage. The party views service in the Israel Defence Forces or National Service as crucial for the State and believes that the study of Torah is necessary to preserve the heritage of the Jewish people. The party will encourage the establishment of combined security/military service and Torah study such as the Hesder Yeshivas and the Nahal Haredi units.Law and order
The party opposes an Israeli constitution until there is a satisfactory balance of power between the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government. The party supports legislation that will curb Supreme Court authority over the Knesset. The party supports changing the selection method of Supreme Court judges to have a more democratic character. The party will support appointment of more judges with varying worldviews, representing the diversity of Israeli society. The party will introduce legislation according to the Hebrew judicial spirit and will work to promote including such values in the Israeli judicial system.Media
"The party supports the fair and inclusive representation of all cultural views and ideologies on the state-run television and radio outlets...and will work toward giving a voice to the many diverse opinions and streams in Israeli society while preserving a general feeling of fairness, mutual respect, freedom of expression and balance. The party will strive to insert fair competition in the media sector and prevent the establishment of journalistic monopolies and conflicts of interest."Politics
The party wants to rebalance power in favor of the KnessetKnesset
The Knesset is the unicameral legislature of Israel, located in Givat Ram, Jerusalem.-Role in Israeli Government :The legislative branch of the Israeli government, the Knesset passes all laws, elects the President and Prime Minister , approves the cabinet, and supervises the work of the government...
over the Supreme Court of Israel
Supreme Court of Israel
The Supreme Court is at the head of the court system and highest judicial instance in Israel. The Supreme Court sits in Jerusalem.The area of its jurisdiction is all of Israel and the Israeli-occupied territories. A ruling of the Supreme Court is binding upon every court, other than the Supreme...
. The party supports fairness and credibility in a clean administration and aspires to be an example of truth, humility, and personal and public integrity. The party will work to prevent moral corruption in Israeli public life by ensuring improved transparency and preventing conflicts of interest among elected officials.
Security and defense
The party supports a solution for peace that involves defense and diplomacy. It believes the unending war environment weakens Israel in the consciousness of its citizens, ruins its economy, and encourages its Arab citizens towards hostility. Further, it believes that the right of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel is inseparably intertwined with their right to peace and security. Because of the constant and consistent Arab violations of the Oslo AccordsOslo Accords
The Oslo Accords, officially called the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements or Declaration of Principles , was an attempt to resolve the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli conflict...
, Wye River Memorandum
Wye River Memorandum
The Wye River Memorandum was an agreement negotiated between Israel and the Palestine Authority to implement the earlier Interim Agreement of 28 September, 1995...
, and Hebron agreements, after the failure of the Camp David Accord, the lives lost in the Oslo War and the Second Lebanon war, and after the rise of Hamas
Battle of Gaza (2007)
The Battle of Gaza was a military conflict between Hamas and Fatah that took place between June 7 and 15, 2007 in the Gaza Strip. After winning Palestinian legislative elections in 2006, Hamas and Fatah formed the Palestinan authority national unity government in 2007, headed by Ismail Haniya. In...
to power in the Palestinian Authority, the party wants to declare all agreements with the PA as null and void. In addition, it wants to end peace agreements with all of its neighbors, but not at the price of security. The party wants to solidify the national camp around a realistic regional peace plan. The party condemns the Gaza disengagement plan and opposes further uprooting of Jewish communities and surrender of parts of the Land of Israel in any future Israeli government with the party.
Settlements in Judea and Samaria
The party uses the term Judea and SamariaJudea and Samaria
Judea and Samaria Area is the official Israeli term roughly corresponding to the territory usually known outside Israel as the West Bank and to the Israeli settlements there that are not governed as part of Jerusalem.-Terminology:...
instead of West Bank
West Bank
The West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
.
The party considers settling the land to be an expression of the fulfillment of Zionism and insists on the right of Jews to settle in all parts of the Land of Israel. It ensures a Jewish "hold on the land, contributes to the distribution of the population, and accomplishes the social revolution of the Jewish people that ties it to its homeland and makes it productive." The party supports settling land for security, economics, and social wellbeing, and supports creating a parliamentary settlement committee to expand settlements in sparsely settled regions of the country. The part wants responsibility for settlements to be transferred from the Defense Ministry to the local councils
Local council (Israel)
Local councils are one of the three types of local government found in Israel, with the other two being cities and regional councils. As of 2003, there were 144 local councils in Israel, these being settlements which pass a minimum threshold enough to justify their operations as independent...
. The party wants to promote Jewish labor in agriculture. Residents in developing towns should have their educational systems and economic enterprises enhanced to improve their standard of living, making them more attractive to potential new residents, the younger generation, and those who grew up there.
Transportation
The party supports establishing more rail transportation to reduce automobile traffic and pollution in large cities.Knesset members
After the 2009 elections:- Ya'akov KatzYa'akov Katz (politician born 1951)Ya’akov Dov "Katzele" Katz is an Israeli politician. He currently leads the National Union party, for whom he is a member of the Knesset, and is also the Executive Director of Beit El yeshiva Center Institutions and Arutz Sheva....
- Moledet - Aryeh Eldad - HaTikva
- Uri ArielUri ArielUri Yehuda Ariel is an Israeli politician who current serves as a member of the Knesset for the National Union.-Biography:Born in Afula, Ariel served in a combat unit called Palsar 7 in the Israel Defense Forces and retired as a major...
- Tkuma - Michael Ben-AriMichael Ben-AriMichael Ben-Ari is an Israeli politician, and a current member of the Knesset for the National Union party. He is the first outspoken disciple of Rabbi Meir Kahane to be elected to the Knesset. He has a Ph.D in Land of Israel studies.-Biography:...
- Eretz Yisrael Shelanu
External links
- Official website
- National Union Knesset website