Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked said that Baruch Lanner, a convicted sex offender from the US, won’t be approved for Aliyah, according to a report by Zvika Klein. Shaked said that the previous Interior Minister didn’t approve Lanner’s Aliyah either. Her wording makes it unclear as to who actually approved Lanner’s A-5 temporary resident visa which allowed him to move to Israel.
.@Ayelet__Shaked responds to @Jerusalem_Post request: Jewish-American sex offender won’t get aliyah approval.
Lanner is a former orthodox rabbi who was convicted of child sexual abuse. in Ocean Township, New Jersey. @yaakovkatz https://t.co/VsRxRZxv4O
— Zvika Klein צביקה קליין (@ZvikaKlein) July 19, 2022
A few weeks ago, a video was posted on Facebook by an Israeli law firm specializing in immigration issues. In the video, the firm’s client discussed how they got him an Israeli A-5 temporary resident visa despite his “legal issues.” An A-5 visa is generally considered a gateway visa to making full Aliyah within the year.
Very quickly, American Olim in Israel, including those who claim to have been among his teenage victims in NCSY from decades ago, recognized the person in the video and were shocked and outraged.
Other Olim expressed their anger at how difficult the Aliyah process was for them, in particular all the reporting and steps required to prove one doesn’t have a criminal background, and here, a convicted sex offender potentially bypassed the barriers and processes that everyone was forced to contend with.
