Yitzhak Kroizer (born 7 September 1985) is an Israeli far-right politician who has served as a Member of the

Knesset The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (with ...

for Otzma Yehudit since 2023. He is a resident of the

Golan Heights The Golan Heights ( ar, هَضْبَةُ الْجَوْلَانِ, Haḍbatu l-Jawlān or ; he, רמת הגולן, ), or simply the Golan, is a region in the Levant spanning about . The region defined as the Golan Heights differs between di ...

settlement of Natur.

Early life and background

Kroizer is the son of Yehuda Kroizer, the local rabbi in Mitzpe Yeriho and the leader of

Yeshivat Haraayon Hayehudi Meir David HaKohen Kahane (; he, רבי מאיר דוד הכהן כהנא ; born Martin David Kahane; August 1, 1932 – November 5, 1990) was an American-born Israeli ordained Orthodox rabbi, writer, and ultra-nationalist politician who serve ...

, an organization founded by Meir Kahane. He served in the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...

and fought in the

Second Lebanon War The 2006 Lebanon War, also called the 2006 Israel–Hezbollah War and known in Lebanon as the July War ( ar, حرب تموز, ''Ḥarb Tammūz'') and in Israel as the Second Lebanon War ( he, מלחמת לבנון השנייה, ''Milhemet Leva ...

. In 2007, two of his brothers died in a car accident. Before entering politics, Kroizer was a farmer, and later ran a construction company.

Political career

Kroizer is a member of the Otzma Yehudit party, and was given the fourth spot on its list in

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

. However, he was not elected as the party won no seats. In 2022, Kroizer was given the fifteenth spot on the party's joint list with the Religious Zionist Party and Noam ahead of that year's

election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has opera ...

. Kroizer was not elected as the list won 14 seats.

Knesset tenure

He entered the Knesset on 1 January 2023 following the resignation of MK

Amihai Eliyahu Amihai Ben-Eliyahu ( he, עמיחי בן אליהו, born 24 April 1979), commonly known as Amihai Eliyahu ( he, עמיחי אליהו), is an Israeli politician and activist who serves as Minister of Heritage since 2022. Eliyahu also briefly se ...

, who forfeited his seat to become a minister as part of the

Norwegian Law Norwegian law may refer to: *Norwegian Law (Israel), a law on the appointment of ministers and membership of the Knesset *Law of Norway Law in Norway follows a Civil law (legal system), civil law system. The Supreme Court of Norway, Supreme Court ...

. In July 2023, Kroizer was selected to serve on the Judicial Selection Committee. Kroizer argued in September 2023 that the Israeli

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

"tramples other authorities and citizens in Israel". Legislation sponsored by Kroizer to imprison children under the age of 14 for terror-related manslaughter advanced in the Knesset in June 2023.

2023 comments on Gaza

On 5 November 2023, Kroizer explicitly called for the deaths of all residents of the

Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip (;The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p.761 "Gaza Strip /'gɑːzə/ a strip of territory under the control of the Palestinian National Authority and Hamas, on the SE Mediterranean coast including the town of Gaza.. ...

during an Army Radio interview. During the interview, Kroizer stated:

“The
Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip (;The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p.761 "Gaza Strip /'gɑːzə/ a strip of territory under the control of the Palestinian National Authority and Hamas, on the SE Mediterranean coast including the town of Gaza.. ...
should be flattened, and there should be one sentence for everyone there – death. We have to wipe the Gaza Strip off the map. There are no innocents there.”

Personal life

Kroizer is married and has three children. He resides in Natur, a settlement in the

References

External links

* 1985 births Israeli settlers Living people Members of the Knesset Otzma Yehudit politicians {{Israel-politician-stub