Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has made the unusual decision not to appoint an adviser for Diaspora affairs, Israel Hayom has learned.
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The Diaspora affairs adviser is tasked with maintaining and bolstering the prime minister's ties with Jewish people overseas and their representatives.
Bennett's decision not to fill the role is particularly surprising given his prioritization of the subject throughout his political career.
In previous governments in which he served, Bennett demanded the Diaspora Affairs portfolio, and his close associate Dvir Kahana until recently served as the ministry's director-general.
Naama Klar, director of the non-profit Reut Group that tackles challenges facing Israel and the Jewish world, said: "Israel's prime minister plays a significant role not only regarding Israel's citizens but vis-à-vis the entire Jewish people. The ties between Israel and the Jewish Diaspora are a strategic issue that has repercussions for national security. Therefore, a senior adviser in the prime minister's sector must be tasked with the subject and be responsible for bringing up-to-date information to the prime minister and the senior echelon on Jewish communities and the robust relationship with them at any given moment."
Klar said the appointment of a Diaspora Affairs minister would not relieve Bennett of the need for a personal adviser in the field, as has been the case in the past.
"The Diaspora Affairs minister has operational responsibility for a variety of commitments and collaborations between the Israeli government and Jewish communities in the Diaspora, but they cannot integrate the importance of the connection between Israel and the Diaspora within the other most serious national security considerations on which the prime minister should formulate their policies. Not to appoint an adviser is to take the Diaspora issue off the prime minister's radar and make it more vulnerable to neglect and deterioration, which will necessarily lead to a blow to Israel's national security," Klar said.
Shira Ruderman, the founder of the Ruderman Family Foundation, which works to bolster ties between Israel and Diaspora Jews, said that while unexpected, "It's unclear whether the fact that they're not appointing an adviser in the field is an indication of the government's intentions on the Diaspora issue. Israel's ties with the Jewish world must be a critical subject that ranks high up in the new government's list of priorities."
She said: "I hope they find effective ways to promote the relationship, for example, by bolstering the role of the Diaspora minister and allocating significant resources."
Bennett's office has yet to comment on the reports.
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