Following a wave of criticism from the Likud and Center-Left parties,Bayit Yehudi leader Naftali Bennett called a press conference on Saturday night to clarify that he opposes refusing military orders.
Bennett accused the Likud of "pouncing on my words, twisting them and making it look like I called for people to refuse orders just for a quarter of a seat in the next Knesset."
"They harmed the unity of the IDF. Thousands of young people could think that I called to refuse orders and take a mistaken example from me. I did not call to refuse orders. I have been serving in the IDF for 22 years as a fighter and a commander, and I never called to refuse orders - every intelligent [television] viewer understood that," he stated.
The Bayit Yehudi leader added that he spoke from his heart, and does not apologize, because a military command to remove a Jew or an Arab from his home is a human rights violation that would put soldiers in a moral dilemma.
"I pray with all my heart that a command like this will never be given again, but I want to say clearly: Every soldier must fulfill orders," he said.
Bennett concluded his speech by saying that the fact that the Likud is dealing with the issue of refusing orders shows that the party could be planning a second disengagement and to evacuate more settlers.