JERUSALEM, ISRAEL — (07-15-19) — Israel’s new Education Minister Rafi Peretz backtracks his support on gay conversion therapy.

The Education Minister attempted to clarify his controversial statements on Saturday, about gay conversion therapy, saying he did not intend that gay children should be sent to conversion therapy.

Education Minister Peretz Performed Gay Conversion Therapy on a Child

Peretz said…”A few clarifications about the interview that was broadcast this evening needs to be clarified. “1. I did not claim that a child should be sent for conversion therapy.”

“2. During my years as an educator, I met with students who felt terrible distress about their sexual orientation, and chose to use professionals to change their orientation. What I said in the interview came from my personal experiences with similar cases.”

“3. The education system in Israel under my leadership will continue to accept all children of Israel as they are, regardless of their sexual orientation. That’s how I made it clear in the interview.”

Rafi Peretz not serves as Israel’s Education minister but he also leads a small religious nationalist party. In the televised interview over the weekend, Peretz said that he supported conversion therapy and has performed the practice himself.

Needless to say his comments were condemned by politicians in Israel and the United States. Even prime minister Netanyahu went on Twitter Sunday to say that Peretz’s remarks on conversion therapy were unacceptable and “do not represent my government’s position.”

This is the second major controversy within a month that new Education minister Rafi Peretz has created for himself. Last week, he elicited outrage from Jews worldwide when he compared inter-marriage between Jews and non-Jews to be a second “Holocaust”.

Article by: Paul Goldberg, Staff Writer

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