Rabbinate official demands probe of Haaretz arson post

Yehuda Avidan, director-general of the Ministry of Religious Services and acting director-general of the Chief Rabbinate, demanded Sunday that police open an investigation into Haaretz journalist Yael Freidson over a social-media post in which she named the Chief Rabbinate offices in response to a question about which public building she would burn.

The incident began when a user on X posting under the name Dr. Y asked followers: "Which public building would you burn if we were smart enough to turn the streets like in France?"

Freidson replied with two words: "Chief Rabbinate offices."

The response prompted Avidan, who serves both as head of the Ministry of Religious Services and as acting head of the Chief Rabbinate, to demand urgent action. He called for an investigation into Freidson, arguing that her words constitute incitement to violence against the Chief Rabbinate.

According to Avidan, the statement goes beyond criticism of a public institution and represents a direct threat to the Rabbinate, its employees and those who visit its offices.

He requested heightened security at Chief Rabbinate offices, citing concern for the safety of staff and the public.

The original post to which Freidson responded raised the possibility of setting fire to public buildings as part of street protests, drawing a comparison to events in France. Freidson chose to name the Chief Rabbinate in her answer, without adding further explanation or distancing herself from the scenario presented in the question.

Following the post, Freidson said: "A cynical response of mine in a humorous thread got out of proportion, so I deleted it. I commend the high sensitivity of the director-general of the Ministry of Religious Services, Yehuda Avidan, to incitement to violence, and therefore I am confident that he will act with the same assertiveness regarding the halachic ruling of Rabbi Dov Lior, who permitted last Friday stealing olives belonging to Palestinians."

"I am confident that today we will receive condemnations from the Chief Rabbis and an appeal from Yehuda Avidan to the police to investigate Rabbi Dov Lior, who has a much larger public standing than a stray tweet on Twitter," she added.