Minister of Culture, Miki Zohar, has formally requested that Minister of Finance, Bezalel Smotrich, revoke the budget allocated to the Batsheva Dance Company, which is funded by the Ministry of Culture and Sports.
Zohar’s request follows multiple complaints regarding the final segment of the company’s new performance, in which dancers raised Palestinian flags, a gesture seen as a clear act of protest that offended the audience.
Under Budget Law 3(a), the Ministry of Finance has the authority to withhold funds from institutions supported by the Ministry of Culture and Sports. In his letter to Minister Smotrich, Zohar urged a thorough examination of the incident, questioning whether the Batsheva Dance Company’s actions violated the terms of the law.
Zohar expressed his outrage over the act, stating: “I am sorry to see that a year after the terrible massacre we experienced, there are those who have already forgotten our hostages in Hamas tunnels, our brave soldiers fighting on all fronts, and are brazenly waving a flag that supports the annihilation of the State of Israel.”
* Arutz 7 contributed to this article.
