United Torah Judaism MK Meir Porush was attacked violently on Monday morning by an unknown person who was trying to cut his beard using a scissors. According to Be’Hadrei Haredim (נמלט על קורקינט: תקף את ח”כ מאיר פרוש וניסה לגזוז את זקנו), the attack took place while Porush was leaving his home on Torah Mitzion Street in Jerusalem. The suspect who appeared to be Haredi, fled the scene on a scooter. Police have launched an extensive manhunt. The background to the incident is not yet clear. Sources close to Porush told Be’Hadrei Haredim that the suspect approached the MK, asked him to identify himself and began attacking him violently.
A police report mentioned two suspects who were involved in the attack on the elected official and fled the scene. Also according to police, MK Porush did not require medical attention. The police said that “at this time, police forces are conducting searches for the suspects and a police investigation has been launched.”
UTJ MK Israel Eichler called on all the Haredi leaders to strongly condemn Monday morning’s violent attack.
“The police must quickly hunt down the attackers who miraculously failed to carry out their plot,” Eichler said, adding, “Violence is a dangerous thing against any citizen, not just against public messengers. This is how the waves of murders began in the Arab sector, when they thought that violence within the sector was an internal matter and that these were just some ‘crazy people.’ It is the responsibility of all of us to eradicate crime as soon as it appears.”
Several public leaders, including President Isaac Herzog and Knesset Speaker Mickey Levy called Porush and expressed their concerns, wishing him a quick recovery from the experience.
MK Porush is a member of Agudat Israel and has served in the Knesset since 1996. He previously served as Deputy Minister of Construction and Housing and Deputy Minister of Education. In 2008 he ran for mayor of Jerusalem. His eldest, Israel Porush, is the mayor of the Haredi city of Elad.
During his tenure as Deputy Minister of Construction and Housing, Porush initiated the construction of the Har Homa neighborhood in Jerusalem. When his party entered Ariel Sharon’s coalition government, Porush refused to accept a ministerial position over to his opposition to the Gush Katif disengagement plan. In the past, Porush has warned that the declarations on the division of Jerusalem encourage attempts by the Palestinian Authority to take over land in the eastern part of the city.