Sabathumbi Forum sends an official warning to Yeshivat Aret Shlomo for abuse of symbols
The kidnappers and families of the missing send a legal warning to the Haredi Yeshiva for misusing their symbols.
The captors and the families of the missing – representing the families of those kidnapped by Hamas during the October 7, 2023, attack – Sent Thursday an Official Warning Letter to the Ultra-Orthodox (haredi) Yeshivat Ateret Shlomo in Beit Shemesh.
The letter, released by attorney Asa Kling, representing the forum, accuses the yeshiva of using fraudulent, corrupt, and illegal materials.
According to the notice, Yeshiva’s campaign used – without permission – the designs of the forums, slogans, and the yellow-ribbon symbol associated with the national struggle to bring home the hostages. The forum claimed that the campaign was infringing on its trademarks and copyrights, misrepresenting its association, and exploiting its reputation for political purposes.
The forum demanded that the yeshiva immediately stop all use of the objects identified with it, commit to refusing future violations of its property, and issue a public apology to the hostages and their families.
“Return the symbols to their rightful place – symbols of hope, unity and the fight against the return of the guts kept by the vicious enemy on Israeli soil,” Toram said.
The issue of haredi registration in the IDF was brought up again in the spotlight this week, even as the Knusset continues to be unable to deal with the issue. If the elections come soon, the haredi groups may risk losing their place in the government, and their reality may change (credit: Marc Israel Resem / The Rubes Resem)
This cautionary letter comes amid one of the most divisive periods in recent social and military history. On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched a brutal attack in Southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and abducting 251 others, mostly residents, in Gaza. More than a dozen kidnappers remain missing or detained, and the families’ campaign to “bring them home” has become a powerful national symbol and rallying cry.
Social tensions threaten to spill over
At the same time, internal social tensions threaten to spill over. The Haredi sector has long resisted the martial law of yeshiva students – a resistance that many see as a concern in the context of the ongoing war. As this book is being delivered, a large “MANE-MANE” Hardive protest against the writing of Yeshiva students was organized in Jerusalem. Police closed major access routes, including Highway 1; Train access is closed.
The protest underscores deep flaws: while many Israelis consider the war effort as a national call to kinship, a large part of the population reads the Torah study as its offering and refuses to be asked down. The result is a bitter division – some see this as a betrayal of national duty, others save for religious identity.
In this charged situation, the abuse of the family symbols of the families of the kidnappers with the yeshiva belonging to the haredi buildings takes on an added significance. The forum says that these symbols – the yellow ribbon, the slogans, the designs – are meant to represent all Israelis united in the struggle to bring back those who will rule. Their assignment to a protest-bound campaign not only violates intellectual property rights but “diminishes” the brand in the eyes of those still held hostage, the book reads.
The book itself shows a legal expansion; It’s not just rhetorical. In need of trademark, copyright, and public application rights, the forum legally challenges Yeshiva’s campaign as an unfair exploitation of its identity and reputation. Should the Yeshiva fail to comply, the forum can proceed to court, not only to obtain compensation but to seek injunctive relief to prevent abuse.
The optics of using the symbol of national capture to show the protest seen by many against part of the war effort (war writing) can provoke a public backlash. For the families of the kidnappers, still living in Limbo and seeking closure, the need is about preserving the purity of their identity – as another “hope, it says.
Yeshiva now faces three immediate decisions: whether to go along with banning the use of construction materials and issuing the requested apology; whether to negotiate a settlement of the NIS 400,000 claim; Or that you will completely compete in the legal agreement of the forum, which can create a full case of the Court, and we have a staff position and scrutinize.
