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Israeli politician

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Orit Strook
אורית סטרוק
Official portrait, 2023
Ministerial roles
2022–Minister of Settlements and National Missions
Faction represented in the Knesset
2013–2015Jewish Home
2021–Religious Zionist Party
Personal details
BornOrit Malka Cohen
(1960-03-15) 15 March 1960 (age 66)
Jerusalem
PartyReligious Zionist Party
(since 2015)
Other political
affiliations
National Religious Party
(2005–2008)
The Jewish Home (2008–2015)
SpouseAvraham Strook
Children11
EducationHebrew University Secondary School
Machon Meir

Orit Malka Strook (Hebrew: אורית מלכה סטרוּק; born 15 March 1960) is an Israeli far-right, religious-conservative politician. She serves as the Minister of Settlements and National Missions in the thirty-seventh government, and is a member of the Knesset for the Religious Zionist Party. She served as member of the Knesset for Tkuma (a faction within the Jewish Home) between 2013 and 2015. Strook is also among the leaders of the Jewish settlement in Hebron, and she established the Israeli non-governmental organization Human Rights Organization of Judea and Samaria, which she headed between 2004 and 2012.

Early life

Orit Cohen (later Strook) was born to a family of lawyers from Hungary.[1] Her middle name Malka was given to her in memory of her grandmother, the Hungarian Jewish poet Mária Kecskeméti [he].[2] She grew up in Kiryat Yovel in Jerusalem and studied at the Hebrew University Secondary School.[3][1]

As a student, Strook became interested in the teachings of Rabbi Haim Drukman and gradually became more religious.[3][1] She eventually became a ba'alat teshuva and embraced Orthodox Judaism. During that period, she began studying at the religious Zionist Machon Meir yeshiva and outreach organization. Shortly thereafter, she married Avraham Strook, a student of Drukman.[1] The young couple briefly lived in the settlement of Yamit in the Sinai Peninsula, but, after the Sinai was returned to Egypt in 1982 as part of the terms of the 1979 peace treaty, Strook and her family left. They were one of the first families to move to the Jewish settlement in Hebron.[4][1] She dropped out of school to focus on caring for her family.[1]

Career

After the Cave of the Patriarchs was closed to Jewish worshippers following the 1994 massacre, Strook was elected as the head of the Women's Committee for the Cave (Hebrew: ועד נשים למען המערה), and worked to convince the political system to re-open the Cave for Jewish visitors.[1] Since 2000, she has headed the legal-political department of the organization of Jewish settlers in Hebron. Following the Israeli government's 2002 evacuation of a family of Jewish settlers from an area of Kiryat Arba, Strook founded the Human Rights Organization of Judea and Samaria. The organization advocates for settlers arguing that the government does not treat them as equal citizens.[5][1] She headed the organization from 2004 until 2012.[6]

Strook was placed thirteenth on the joint National Union–National Religious Party list for the 2006 elections, but failed to win a seat as the alliance won only nine seats.[citation needed] In the 2013 elections, Strook was elected to the Knesset on The Jewish Home list.[7] She sponsored legislation that would make labor laws apply to the West Bank. Some politicians argued that the law was a human rights measure, while others argued that it would promote Israeli seizure of the West Bank.[8][9] It was later withdrawn.[8] Strook was not elected in several subsequent elections as her party did not win enough seats.[citation needed]

Minister of Settlements and National Missions (2022—present)

For the 2021 elections, Strook was placed fifth on Religious Zionist Party's list,[10] and returned to the Knesset, as the alliance won six seats.[11][12] In December 2022, Strook became the first person to be appointed the Minister of Settlements and National Missions.[13] Strook criticized Israeli security officials who called attacks against Palestinians by Jewish settlers in the West Bank "terrorism", comparing them to the Wagner Group.[14] After a law requiring the dismantling of four settlements in the West Bank was overturned, she called for the return of settlements to Gaza.[15] She supported proposed judicial reforms to limit the power of the Israel courts, stating that "We are abolishing the dictatorship of the High Court of Justice and enabling democracy to emerge."[16][17]

Strook and other members of the Religious Zionists' party meeting with President Isaac Herzog in 2022

Prior to the Gaza war, Strook frequently criticized the Israeli government for allowing materials into the Gaza Strip which she stated were being used by Hamas to build weapons.[3] During the Gaza war, she opposed potential agreements for a ceasefire, which proposed Israel halting hostilities in exchange for Hamas releasing Israeli hostages.[18][19] She argued that previous hostage deals had contributed to the October 7 attacks by showing Hamas that taking hostages was worthwhile to them.[20] In response to American efforts to negotiate a ceasefire, Strook said that the United States "doesn't deserve to be called a friend of the State of Israel".[21][22] She warned that her party might withdraw from the governing coalition if Israel agreed to a ceasefire.[23]

According to YNET, Strook and Bezalel Smotrich have been credited with greatly expanding the land and power of Jewish settlers in the West Bank under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.[24] In July 2024, Strook praised the Israeli government for expanding settlements in the Hebron Hills, stating that it was a "miraculous" time period and that "We want to accomplish as much as possible".[25][26][27] Her comments have been criticized as depicting the Gaza war as an opportunity to expand Jewish settlements.[26][28][29]

In May 2026, Haaretz reported that the ICC had requested arrest warrants for Strook, Smotrich, Itamar Ben-Gvir, and others.[30][31][24] The ICC denied the report.[32]

Views

Strook is a member of the far-right Religious Zionist party.[21] She opposes recognition of non-Orthodox movements of Judaism.[33][12] After the death of Ariel Sharon in 2014, she made a Facebook post thanking God that Sharon was not able to remove Israeli settlements in the West Bank as he had removed them from Gaza.[4][34] She opposes the Oslo Accords and has stated that: "Oslo is the great disaster of the State of Israel, and we are working to fix it".[24] She supports the re-occupation of Gaza, believing it to be given to Jews by God.[17][15][35] In December 2022, Strook suggested that doctors could refuse to treat gay people if it conflicted with their religious beliefs, as long as there were other doctors available. She stated that Jewish doctors should not be required to break Jewish law in a Jewish state.[36]

Personal life

Strook is a resident of the Avraham Avinu settlement in the city of Hebron in the occupied West Bank. She has eleven children and twelve grandchildren.[3][1]

In 2007, Strook's son Zviki Strook was convicted of kidnapping and torturing a Palestinian boy, who was found naked, handcuffed, unconscious, and wounded with severe injuries. Zviki Strook was sentenced to 30 months in prison. After the conviction, Orit Strook defended her son, stating that, "Unlike the Court, who preferred to believe the Arab witnesses, we are sure of Zvi's innocence, and are hurting from the success of his haters and would assist him to deal with the difficult sentence imposed on him".[37][38][39] In 2013 Strook sued the human rights group Machsom Watch for libel after the group released a song suggesting that she had encouraged her son to commit the crime.[40] The organization stated that the song was satirical.[41]

In early 2025, one of Strook's daughters, Shoshana, filed a police complaint accusing her parents of sexual and ritual abuse.[42][43] The investigation by Lahav 433 Anti-Corruption Unit was subject to a gag order.[42] According to the police, they did not find any evidence for Shoshana's accusations. The women's rights group Bonot Alternativa criticized the police investigation as inadequate. Shoshana continued to make additional accusations in social media posts, including that she had been forced to undergo conversion therapy and that her life was in danger.[44] On 15 March 2026, it was announced that Shoshana had died and that her body had been found in Amirim, Israel. The police reported no suspicion of foul play.[43] The cause of Shoshana's death and the validity of her allegations have been widely debated and discussed within Israel.[45][46][47][48] In an interview with Israel Hayom after Shoshana's death, Strook called her "kind-hearted" and "talented" and stated that she had suffered from serious mental illness for several years.[49]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i "From the kitchen to the kitchennette". Israel National News. Archived from the original on 16 June 2010. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  2. ^ "חברת מופת בארץ הזאת". www.news1.co.il (in Hebrew). 26 February 2013. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  3. ^ a b c d "'An attack will come when Hamas decides': The warnings that should have set off alarm bells". Israel Hayom. 9 January 2024. Retrieved 15 March 2026.
  4. ^ a b "Jewish Home MK praises God for taking Sharon from office in 2006". The Times of Israel. 11 January 2014. ISSN 0040-7909. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  5. ^ Dudai, Ron (2 September 2017). "Entryism, mimicry and victimhood work: the adoption of human rights discourse by right-wing groups in Israel". The International Journal of Human Rights. 21 (7): 866–888. doi:10.1080/13642987.2017.1313235. ISSN 1364-2987.
  6. ^ "Orit Strook". Knesset website.
  7. ^ Sales, Ben (29 January 2013). "The New Faces Of The 19th Knesset". The Jewish Week. JTA. Archived from the original on 11 October 2016. Retrieved 30 November 2014.
  8. ^ a b Levinson, Chaim (21 July 2015). "Israeli Right-wing Party Drops Bid to Have Labor Law Apply in West Bank". Haaretz. Retrieved 4 June 2026.
  9. ^ Heruti-Sover, Tali (31 October 2014). "Should Israeli Labor Laws Apply to Palestinian Workers in West Bank?". Haaretz. Retrieved 4 June 2026.
  10. ^ "Israel Election 2021: All the Official Party Slates". Haaretz. 3 February 2021. Archived from the original on 4 February 2021.
  11. ^ "Reform rabbi, Kahanist agitator, firebrand writer: The new Knesset's 16 rookies". The Times of Israel. 26 March 2021.
  12. ^ a b "Israel Election: Meet the Extremist Lawmakers About to Join the Government". Haaretz. 3 November 2022. Retrieved 4 June 2026.
  13. ^ "Who's who in the new Netanyahu-led government". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
  14. ^ "Minister to security heads who slammed settler terror: "Who are you? Wagner Group?"". The Times of Israel. 26 June 2023. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
  15. ^ a b "Then we retake Gaza: Hardline minister hails repeal of West Bank Disengagement". The Times of Israel. 22 March 2023. ISSN 0040-7909. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  16. ^ "Sovereignty Movement rallies in favor of judicial reform plan". Israel National News. 12 March 2023. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  17. ^ a b Hisherik, Michal; Ben-Rafael Galanti, Sigal (2024), "The New Messianic Nationalist Populism (NMNP) in Israel", in Íñigo-Mora, Isabel; Lastres-López, Cristina (eds.), Discourse Approaches to an Emerging Age of Populist Politics, Singapore: Springer Nature, pp. 285–308, doi:10.1007/978-981-97-1355-4_15, ISBN 978-981-97-1355-4, retrieved 16 March 2026
  18. ^ "השרה סטרוק: "יש לנו מטרות מלחמה ואי אפשר לוותר עליהן"". Makor Rishon (in Hebrew). 31 January 2025. Retrieved 15 March 2026.
  19. ^ "Minister Strock: Gov't has no right to throw war away to save hostages". The Jerusalem Post. 1 May 2024. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  20. ^ "Israel and its debilitating vulnerability". Israel Today. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  21. ^ a b Brown, Benjamin; Edwards, Christian (2 May 2024). "Far-right Israeli ministers urge Netanyahu not to accept ceasefire proposal". CNN. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
  22. ^ "Minister Strock: "US doesn't deserve to be called a friend of the State of Israel"". Israel National News. 5 May 2024. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
  23. ^ Vega, Joan Cabasés (20 August 2025). "Israel prepares to launch its offensive at the gates of Gaza City". EL PAÍS English. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  24. ^ a b c אזולאי, מורן; אזולאי, מורן (20 May 2026). "סטרוק: "אני באבל גם כי איבדתי בת וגם על הייסורים שלה. לא הצלחנו להציל אותה"" [Strok: "I am in mourning both because I lost a daughter and for her suffering. We were unable to save her"]. Ynet (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2 August 2026.
  25. ^ Freidson, Yael. "'Era of miracles': Israeli far-right minister rejoices at West Bank settlement expansion". Haaretz.com. Archived from the original on 20 July 2025. Retrieved 15 March 2026.
  26. ^ a b Omer, Atalia (22 May 2025). "Turning Palestine into a Terra Nullius: On Amalek and "Miracles"". Journal of Genocide Research. doi:10.1080/14623528.2025.2504737#d1e128. Archived from the original on 29 May 2025.
  27. ^ אזולאי, מורן; אזולאי, מורן (7 July 2024). "השרה אורית סטרוק על הגברת הבנייה בהתנחלויות: "זו כמו תקופה של נס" | צפו" [Minister Orit Struk on the increase in construction in settlements: "This is like a time of miracle"]. Ynet (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2 August 2026.
  28. ^ Adler, Jonathan (11 February 2025). "Inside the Israeli movement to recolonize Gaza". +972 Magazine. Retrieved 15 March 2026.
  29. ^ Wallach, Yair (22 January 2025). "The peace paradox". New Statesman. Retrieved 15 March 2026.
  30. ^ "Smotrich threatens to clear West Bank village over ICC arrest warrant request". Haaretz. Archived from the original on 29 May 2026. Retrieved 2 August 2026.
  31. ^ Graham-Harrison, Emma (20 May 2026). "Israeli security minister stirs diplomatic outrage with flotilla activist abuse video". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2 August 2026.
  32. ^ "ICC denies it issued new warrants against Israeli officials, calls report inaccurate". Reuters.
  33. ^ Judy Maltz (25 March 2015). "Among new Knesset faces, some staunch advocates of Jewish pluralism". Haaretz.
  34. ^ Lev, David. "Dayan: They Don't Like Struk Because They Fear Her". Israel National News. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  35. ^ "Gaza ceasefire: Will Trump end Netanyahu's rule?". Middle East Eye. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  36. ^ Lynfield, Ben (26 December 2022). "Israeli politician suggests doctors could refuse to treat gay patients". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  37. ^ "עונשו של מתנחל שהתעלל בפלסטיני הוארך בשנה". Haaretz (in Hebrew).
  38. ^ "ביהמ"ש העליון החמיר בעונשו של צבי סטרוק". Israel National News (in Hebrew).
  39. ^ Naomi Zeveloff (16 November 2014). "Of Olives, Politics and Palestinians". The Forward.
  40. ^ Ronen, Gil. "MK Struk Sues Leftists over Poem against her Son". Israel National News. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  41. ^ Zeiger, Asher (17 June 2013). "Right-wing MK sues West Bank watchdog for libel". The Times of Israel. ISSN 0040-7909. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  42. ^ a b Breiner, Josh (10 April 2025). "Daughter of Senior Public Figure Alleges She Was Sexually Assaulted by Her Parents". Haaretz. Retrieved 4 June 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  43. ^ a b Neev, Keshet (15 March 2026). "Orit Strock announces death of daughter Shoshana". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 15 March 2026.
  44. ^ Neev, Keshet (15 March 2026). "Daughter of National Missions Minister Orit Strock found dead, police investigate case". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 18 April 2026.
  45. ^ Grover, Michal (19 March 2026). "Demonstration in Haifa: "Demand a full investigation into the circumstances of her death"". Haipo. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  46. ^ Grinzaig, Avishai (19 March 2026). "היועמ"שית הציעה להבהיר שאין חשד, סטרוק ביקשה להניח לבתה" [The attorney general suggested clarifying that there was no suspicion, Strok asked to let her daughter go]. B'Sheva (in Hebrew). Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  47. ^ "אורית סטרוק חוטפת: "אלוהים ישלם לך", "אנחנו נעתור לנתיחת הגופה"" [Orit Strok kidnaps: "God will pay you," "We will petition for an autopsy"]. Ice (in Hebrew). 23 March 2026. Retrieved 23 April 2026.
  48. ^ Rivlin, Haim (15 May 2026). "Breaking the Silence Around Ritual Abuse". Shomrim. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
  49. ^ Kahana, Ariel (19 March 2026). "הטרגדיה של שושנה סטרוק נחשפת: "זו היתה רכבת הרים"" [Shoshana Struck's tragedy revealed: "It was a roller coaster"]. Israel Hayom (in Hebrew). Retrieved 18 April 2026.
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