It was the most painful silence I have ever encountered as an interviewer. The tough minister, the former paratroopers' sergeant major, the officer who received a TL, who returned to combat service from a serious injury, suddenly stopped speaking. My questions took me back to the most difficult moment in his life, when you were orphaned by his father. Ofir Sofer was only 12 years old when his father, Ben Zion, head of the Marom HaGalil council, died in a car accident. The year was 1987. Sofer the son, only in the seventh grade, and his brother had already left home in favor of studying at a midrashiya in Kfar Saba - a coveted middle school in the religious-national sector.
"Father was a figure with a high public presence. He broke ground in many ways. He was a man of connections. Just last week I sat with his soulmate from Kibbutz Sasa. They were in true friendship despite the great ideological differences. The same friend told me, 'Remember that the first alliance Between Hashomer HaTzair and the Israel Defense Forces was between me and your father.'
"When I talk about connections, I tell this story, because we grew up in a very complex area. Druze, Circassian, religious, secular, ultra-Orthodox. On the swimming team I swam with guys from the kibbutzim. We sang songs from the Land of Israel in the kibbutzim. Part of the education at home was to be who that you are and be with everyone."
So he came to visit you on Wednesday.
"Father used to visit us (Ofir and his brother Amit, currently head of the Marom HaGalil Council, Israel) on Wednesdays.
To think that on the roads of that time he would do this, despite the work, teaches you that he was an exemplary father.
The next day, Thursday, the 25th of Adar, he slipped on the road on the way to the council.
How did it affect you?
"Wow. I think it made me more determined and stronger. Because in the end it's important for you to continue to fulfill."
You mean you said, "even though father is gone, I carry on"?
"Yes. A crisis is ultimately something that pushes you forward."
And there was no thought that after such a thing you would return home to be with your mother and brothers?
"Father and mother met at Rabbi Getz's school (Rabbi Meir Yehuda Getz, later Rav HaKotel, A.C.).
The deceased's mother said that after Rabbi Getz's son fell in the Six Day War, he returned to school, and his saying was 'continue forward'. He continued to run the school. When the oath was over..."
Here a writer breaks for long seconds.
The memories and emotions overwhelm him.
It is not easy to return to this moment.
He falls silent, collects himself, regulates his breathing and returns to the story: "When the seven was over, mother said 'continue forward'".
I took you to a significant moment.
"Yes".
I touch on deep things but it is important to me to hear from another person how such experiences go. How do you see it today as a father and as an adult?
"That was the first crisis. The second crisis was in the army. After I was wounded - and I'm not talking about the battle but about the rehabilitation - there were maybe six hours when I thought about being discharged, but I was in the regular service and it was quite clear to me that I would continue (in the army) no matter what. This is part of the message that will be To me later to my soldiers and warriors."
Back to the glory days
The thought of how things will look in the perspective of time, how he will be remembered at the end of his journey and what legacy he leaves to his children and the Israeli public, is a guideline for Ofir Sofer.
He is 48 years old, lives with his wife Adina and their seven children in the settlement of Tefahot in the Lower Galilee.
He himself was born and raised 40 minutes away in Moshav Alma, in the Upper Galilee.
At a young age, as mentioned, he left home to live in a boarding school at a seminary in Kfar Saba and from there to high school at the Noam seminary.
Before enlisting in the Carob patrol, he studied for two years at the "Shebi Hebron" yeshiva in the city of Avot.
In 1996 he was seriously injured in the "Wall Tunnel events".
As a young officer he knew that the approach of his commanders, who see the Oslo Accords as an era of peace and therefore rely on the Palestinian Authority, is fundamentally wrong.
Therefore, unlike them, he was not surprised when Palestinian police officers opened fire on him and his soldiers at Joseph's Tomb in Nablus.
Under live fire he rescued the wounded, was injured, and among other things lost the sight in one of his eyes.
For his performance he was decorated with the Bezalesh. After he recovered from his injury, he returned to the IDF and reached the rank of major in the 202nd Paratrooper Command.
The injury scarred him with post-trauma, a wound that a writer talks about publicly.
After the liberation, he joined the political life in the "Religious Zionist" party, in its various incarnations.
Before we got to talking about the issues of absorption and immigration, we had to start with the security situation and also with the legal reform - two fronts that are burning the country.
A writer is very careful about providing headlines or cutting sentences.
"If we align ourselves according to Twitter's norms, we will end up like Twitter," he says.
He in no way criticizes his partners, and even praises both the prime minister and the chairman of his party, Bezalel Smotrich. "He leads a responsible policy, and in the government discussions you could see the appreciation for him from the governor and the professionals." But between the lines it seems that If things were up to him, he would have taken a more restrained line. "We are not here for two days, we don't need to finish everything in a week.
We have a public mandate and we need to keep it," he says.
Towards the end of the conversation, he adds: "In politics, you have to make decisions and decisions are not easy, on the contrary. People imagine that there are 120 scum in the Knesset, but that is not the case. Most of them are good people. They cite the extremes. There are things that, if you have broken them, are hard to fix, and there are things that can always be fixed. Even if it seems to you that this is the opportunity of a lifetime, fix 90 or 80 percent and not 100. In the end, when you lead the force, you need to know that everyone is behind us."
I heard here a thick hint of a compromise in the reform.
"We are committed to real listening, not necessarily agreement. The reform was accepted by a democratic majority. And the responsibility lies with both sides, although the stronger side has more responsibility. If we arrive at this perspective, we will do things more precisely. And I go against all the harsh statements from people that I would expect from them Completely different."
"Don't blame others"
The beginning of our conversation is dedicated to the security situation.
Sofer, kosher in the government, accepts responsibility.
"Our responsibility is to fight terrorism. We have experienced more and less difficult times and the responsibility is ours, for all that this implies. For me, when they say Mount Bracha, where the attack took place on Sunday, it is also the place from which the helicopter evacuated me to the hospital. I can't help but look at it with eyes of faith I believe with all my heart in the sentence 'About three places in the land the nations of the world cannot say are stolen, they are in your hands, and these are: the Cave of the Patriarchs and the Temple and the burial place of Joseph (Shechem)'".
Impressive that you accept responsibility, but what about the actions?
"We will have to formulate a policy of the full right, which does not bear or give on the territories or on the security of the citizens of Israel."
But as someone who was there, fought and was wounded in the very same sector, what can and should the army and the government do to stop, or at least reduce, this wave of terrorism?
"I have great respect for the commanders of the IDF.
They are one of the best we have.
The army operates relatively intensively in both Nablus and Jenin.
I have no doubt that we need an iron wall and a hard hand.
I understand the concept of separating the population from terrorism, but I have a hard time with it.
We have no choice but to put up strong barriers."
What does this mean concretely?
"That the civilian population in Nablus and Hawara will also pay a price. More checkpoints, more inspections, more IDF presence, more offensive operations and activity that produces intelligence.
The government should put up an iron wall, and not out of complicity or threats or someone holding a gun to our temples."
That is, the head of the MLA and the head of the Shin Bet should not have gone to the conference in Aqaba on Sunday, in which the Palestinians, the Americans, the Jordanians and the Egyptians participated?
"I only knew about this event in retrospect and from the media. My friend Smotrich didn't know about it either, when I asked him."
So what do you say to Netanyahu, who is hiding such an important event from you?
"I want to say to all of us, that is, to the religious Zionist party and the partnership: we need to know how to work together."
What do you think about the fact that Jewish citizens as part of a revenge operation took a toll on the Arab population?
"Only the IDF and the security forces should deal with terrorism.
And I say this as someone who suffered terrorist attacks in his position as a commander and saw this rage at least once in a severe way."
I mean, the residents who rioted shouldn't have done so?
"Unequivocally. We need to act in a stately manner. Because when I hear former senior officers in the IDF calling for the refusal of an order, then we have reached a bad place.
And if I am kosher from religious Zionism and have to condemn something that shocks me, then we have come to a bad place."
So you condemn the riots in Hvara or the riots on the left?
"Everything, including in the context of trying to harm the officers and soldiers. I am pained by the statements of Barak, Halutz and Olmert, delusional and irresponsible statements. You would not imagine that they would be said by people who served in such senior positions. It is simply a crime."
One more question in the context of the attacks. When Bennett and Shaked were in power and you were in the opposition, in your party, including Smotrich, they directly accused them of the attacks, claiming that they were weak. Are there things you said, or others said at the time, that you don't think should have been said?
"I didn't act like that. With the exception of one tweet at 12:30 at night, something that angered me about dialogue with Palestinians at a time of difficult reality. But in general, we don't need to blame (others). There are tools that should not be broken, such as the status of state institutions, such as Ramtech." To and Commissioner... When you stand on the podium in the Knesset, always remember that your children are watching."
Like a sausage factory
What has stirred up the country the most in recent weeks is the legal reform.
The coalition continues to promote the legislation, the opposition refuses any discourse, and the streets are burning.
If the reform comes to the Knesset tomorrow, do you support it?
"Everyone understands, in the opposition and in the coalition, that a significant legal reform needs to be carried out. There is a democratic majority to promote the reform. The majority of Israeli citizens, including those protesting in the streets, do not know the details of the reform. I do not say this disrespectfully, but out of respect for the minds."
So here the ball comes back to you. You failed in the explanation.
"The results speak for themselves. There is a gap that needs to be mediated and bridged. We didn't explain well, we didn't build it right. But it's not too late. There are people like Yair Lapid who don't want agreement. There are parties who want compromises but currently can't reach compromises. They are afraid. Our responsibility , to reach an optimal result, to have a conversation."
You still haven't answered, will you raise your hand in favor of this reform as it is currently presented?
"This reform will come out a little differently than how it starts."
You are a bit evasive.
"I'm not shying away. I support the reform and think it's important, but we also built it to reach compromises. Every law that enters the Knesset comes out a little differently. It's like a sausage factory. It's fine. The Minister of Justice called for a discussion on the eve of Rishon. From the other side (referring to the reaction speech of President The Highness Esther Hayut, a.k.a.) there was no invitation to the conversation, which is a shame."
60 days have passed since MK Ofir Sofer sat down in the chair of Minister of Absorption. In the distant history of Israel, this was one of the most important government offices, located in a building next to the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem. Sofer ("a naïve politician" he defines himself) dreams of returning to the gray portfolio shine
Let's move on to other topics. The deputy minister who resigned Avi Maoz was, among other things, responsible for the Nativ agency, which is responsible for bringing immigrants from the countries of the former Commonwealth of Nations. Does Nativ move to you?
"I would love for Avi Maoz to remain in the coalition. Besides, I would love to receive more cases. Nativ can serve as an organic part of the Ministry of Absorption."
What will you do with those who are not Jews but the grandchildren of Jews?
"I don't want to let Stalin win. On the other hand, I don't want people to look at the Ministry of Immigration and Absorption as a platform to dig into and bring votes."
So what do you do with it?
"The industrial, political aspects of the aliyah should stop. Period. There is a party called Israel Beytinu, which was here even when it wasn't here. That's it."
Sofer emphasizes that he will continue to encourage immigration from Russian-speaking countries, and that he intends to go on a tour of these countries soon.
"But it will not continue to be a political business."
What about the "grandchild clause"?
"We will have to formulate it with all the complexities and sensitivities. We will do it with a lot of humility, listening and dialogue. I met twice with the president of the country on this matter. It requires a lot of cotton wool from us. But politics can do a lot, and I intend to design a policy to encourage Jewish immigration."
One of your main plans is the emigration of Jews from France and North America.
"True. There is a drastic decrease in immigration from these places. We need to create optimal absorption programs that will tell people, 'Israel is your home and you are welcome.'
What about the immigration from Ethiopia?
"The rise of 'Zur Yisrael' is a chapter that I need to study. There is something that is working right now, and it is not in my power to change one way or the other."
Finally, what did you think of the words of MK Merav Ben Ari, who defined your party as the most racist in the Knesset?
"Merav is a good company but sometimes you miss out, and this is one of the examples, even technically practical - there is me, in a relatively senior position (first in the primaries);
There is MK Moshe Salomon (a member of the Ethiopian community) who laughed at himself that we would become black from too much work; and MK Ohad Tal, half if not full, from North Africa."
Thank you very much, and I apologize if I poked too deep into your soul.
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