Health Ministry Ya’acov Litzman has decided to end his term and switch to the Housing and Construction Ministry, according to a report broadcast Saturday night by Israel’s Channel 12 television news team.
Litzman was told by his rebbe, the Grand Rabbi of Gur, Rabbi Yaakov Aryeh Alter, that it would be important to acquire the Construction portfolio in order to help the haredi (strictly Orthodox) constituency.
Following that conversation, Litzman, head of United Torah Judaism (UTJ), informed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday that he would agree to the switch as long as the Housing and Construction Ministry portfolio included the Israel Lands Authority.
There has been a great deal of speculation by Israeli media on which party will receive the Health Ministry portfolio once Litzman vacates the position, and who will receive the portfolio as minister in his stead.
However, the matter is still not clear, as various politicians jockey for position within each faction.
