CAMERA Prompts LA Times Correction on Haredim

CAMERA staff prompted a correction this week on an Op-Ed in the Los Angeles Times which had inaccurately stated that haredim (ultra-Orthodox) in Israel are exempt from taxes and military service. The error and correction follow:

Error (Los Angeles Times, Meghan Daum Op-Ed, 1/12/12): Though the ultra-Orthodox haredim make up just 10% of the Israeli population (they’re also exempt from taxes and military service . . . )

Correction (1/17/12): Religion: Meghan Daum, in her Jan. 12 Op-Ed column about religious zealotry, wrote that haredim — ultra Orthodox Jews — in Israel are exempt from taxes and military service. The haredim are not legally exempt from either obligation; however, most receive exemption from military service because they are essentially full-time religious scholars. For much the same reason, many also do not earn enough money to qualify to pay income tax.

CAMERA commends the Los Angeles Times for the timely correction. According to the Jerusalem Post:

According to statistics from the National Council for Economics in the Prime Minister’s Office, about 37 percent of haredi men participate in the workforce, compared with 67% of the total male population, while 48% of haredi women participate, compared with 57% overall.

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