According to the Calcalist, the Ashkenazi and Sephardic Chief Rabbis are tasked with forming a committee to select new Chief Rabbis, with potential candidates for the position including their own brothers.
Calcalist journalist Shahar Ilan highlights that Rabbis David Lau and Yitzhak Yosef are responsible for appointing 10 out of the 150 committee members tasked with selecting the next Chief Rabbis. Notably, among the candidates for this esteemed position are Rabbi David Yosef and Rabbi Moshe Chaim Lau, who are siblings of the current Chief Rabbis.
Simultaneously, nepotism appears to be evident in the selection process for religious judges and city rabbis. Calcalist and Kan have mentioned names such as Rabbi Abraham Deri, who is the cousin of Shas Party Chairman Aryeh Deri and the son of Beersheva Rabbi Yehuda Deri, and Rabbi Yehuda Man, who is the son-in-law of Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi David Lau, among others.
Attorney Ohad Wigler, head of the public policy department at the ITIM organization, has addressed this issue by sending a letter to the government's legal adviser.
Wigler highlighted the unprecedented nature of the current situation, stating, "The representatives of the Chief Rabbis on the committee act in accordance with their directives. It is unacceptable for Chief Rabbis to wield influence over family members in this manner. There is no other administrative structure where such a clear conflict of interest exists."
