Influental ultra-Orthodox leaders spoke out in support of the coronavirus children's vaccination on Tuesday, calling on followers to get vaccinated and inoculate their children. 

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Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky instructed ultra-Orthodox schools to get the students inoculated. In a message published in the Haredi newspaper Yated Ne'eman, he said, "Make sure to get the vaccines to schools, and they should be used to get immunized."

Rabbi Chaim Isaac Landau of Bnei Brak called for the vaccination of "the entire public – children, adults and pregnant women."

"Everyone must be vaccinated to protect their lives. A person must not risk himself. This is a personal duty, and certainly a public duty. As soon as possible and at any age eligible, vaccination is a must."

The announcement comes against the backdrop of a significant increase in the number of children's vaccination, partly due to the spread of the recently identified Omicron variant.

Nevertheless, the inoculation rates in the ultra-Orthodox community remain low. According to the latest data, the children's immunization rates in the Haredi sector are seven times lower than in the general population.

However, the Meuhedet health fund reported a 12.5% increase in ultra-Orthodox children's vaccination on Monday. Instructions by Haredi leaders are expected to drive up the inoculation rate further.

In recent weeks, Kanievsky has been criticized by vaccine opponents for his unequivocal support for doses. Earlier in November, the ultra-Orthodox leader met with senior health officials to discuss vaccine safety and ways to encourage vaccination among ultra-Orthodox children.

Experts – Coronavirus Commissioner Salman Zarka, expert epidemiologist Professor Ran Balicer, and Kanievsky's personal physician, Dr. Meshulam Hart – presented Kanievsky with the latest data on children's vaccines. Having carefully studied the information, the sage ruled that children ages of five-11 should be vaccinated.

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Ultra-Orthodox newspapers are slated to publish Tuesday a scathing joint letter by leading Haredi rabbis Chaim Kanievsky and Gershon Edelstein, criticizing the government for reforms they claim would undermine Judaism.

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In the letter, the two express opposition to the inclusion of reform worshippers at the Western Wall Plaza, a move they say would "harm the sanctity of the" site. They claim such worshippers "fight God and his teachings."

The matter has been a source of controversy for some time. For example, in November, ultra-Orthodox worshippers clashed with members of the egalitarian movement Women of the Wall, who arrived at the holy site for a demonstration.

Kanievsky and Edelstein also criticize Religious Services Minister Matan Kahana, who spearheaded the kashrut reform that seeks to abolish the Chief Rabbinate's monopoly over the kashrut supervision industry.

The government "is working to destroy the walls of kashrut and conversion," the letter said.

Kahana is now advancing a conversion reform that would see the establishment of a new conversion authority outside the jurisdiction of the Rabbinate, and would include liberal, or non-Orthodox, conversions performed abroad.

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Following the launch of Israel's campaign to vaccinate children against coronavirus, one of the most influential rabbis in Haredi circles called on parents Thursday to vaccinate their children.

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Senior health officials arrived at Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky's residence in Bnei Brak to discuss vaccine safety and ways to encourage vaccination among ultra-Orthodox children.

Among those who attended the meeting were Coronavirus Commissioner Salman Zarka, expert epidemiologist Professor Ran Balicer, and Kanievsky's personal physician, Dr. Meshulam Hart.

Zarka presented Kanievsky with the Food and Drug Administration approval for the children's vaccine, as well as data on efficacy and safety. He also stressed that the Health Ministry had recently reported a rise in coronavirus morbidity, with unvaccinated children comprising most of the new cases.

Balicer, who is director of Health Policy Planning at Clalit Health Fund, demonstrated post-vaccination data on millions of children in the United States and recent studies conducted in Israel and worldwide on the safety of children's vaccines, that showed that the risks of getting infected with the virus outweighed the potential side effects of inoculation.

Hart also spoke out in support of the shots.

Having carefully studied the data, Kanievsky ruled that children ages of five-11 should be vaccinated, and wished experts success in the national campaign.

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Prominent ultra-Orthodox Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky told his disciples Thursday that it is preferable to side with the Arabs rather than left-wing political parties for the purpose of safeguarding Jewish tradition.

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His statement came amid the backdrop of last week's inconclusive election. In essence, Kanievsky endorsed the possibility of a right-wing religious government supported by the Arab Israeli Ra'am party.

Kanievsky explained that, unlike the Left bloc, Arab Israeli lawmakers do not aspire to "turn everyone secular," and pointed out that religious Knesset members would have an easier time cooperating with them as they share similar values when it comes to respect of religion, family, and military conscription.

The statement was publicized as Ra'am leader Mansour Abbas was addressing the Israeli public, calling for more cooperation between the Jewish and the Arab Israeli public.

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There has been speculation about the accuracy of the quote, which was published by Channel 12, due to the rabbi's age, physical condition, and lack of public statements in recent years.

i24NEWS contributed to this report

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