Rabbi asserts that coronavirus vaccines can 'turn' people into homosexuals

Contradicts instructions of rabbis Chaim Kanievsky, Gershon Edelstein and Shalom Cohen, three of the most senior rabbis in the ultra-Orthodox world.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
ULTRA-ORTHODOX men – one masked, one not – are seen in the haredi enclave of Borough Park in Brooklyn, New York, on October 6. (photo credit: CARLO ALLEGRI/REUTERS)
ULTRA-ORTHODOX men – one masked, one not – are seen in the haredi enclave of Borough Park in Brooklyn, New York, on October 6.
(photo credit: CARLO ALLEGRI/REUTERS)
An influential rabbi in the ultra-Orthodox sect has instructed his followers not to get vaccinated against the novel coronavirus, warning that it "can make them gay," according to Israel Hayom.
The report states that Rabbi Daniel Asor has also asserted unfounded conspiratorial claims surrounding the coronavirus pandemic in the past, stating that the virus and the vaccines are manufactured by a "global malicious government" made up of a combination secret societies such as the Illuminati, the Freemasons and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates in an attempt to "establish a new world order."
His recent rant goes directly against the instructions of rabbis Chaim Kanievsky, Gershon Edelstein and Shalom Cohen, three of the most senior rabbis in the ultra-Orthodox world, who have each recommended that those who are able to receive the coronavirus vaccines should do so.
Without providing evidence, Asor asserts that "criminal organizations" such as the World Health Organization and vaccine developers such as Pfizer and Moderna presented false data to the aforementioned haredi leaders in order to receive their recommendation. He also claims there is a secret American-Israeli "army" run out of the US and Israeli emergency authorities that has been furthering the motives of the "global government" during the pandemic.
Israel Hayom reached out to the LGBTQ advocacy group Havruta for a statement on the rabbi's comments, which said it's "currently gearing up to welcome our impending new members."
Zachary Keyser and Jeremy Sharon contributed to this report.