Finale session of the 25th Knesset with the Distribution of “Tanya HaShalem”
The current 25th Knesset—elected on November 1, 2022 (7 Cheshvan 5783) and set to complete its term on October 27, 2026 (16 Cheshvan 5787)—holds the distinction of serving the longest tenure since the 20th Knesset, making it the first to complete a full term since the 11th Knesset.
During the intense final week of the summer session, the Rebbe’s emissary to Israel’s Ministry of Transportation, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Wilhelm, visited the Knesset building. He presented the remaining members of parliament who had not yet received it with the magnificent set of “Tanya HaShalem” (The Complete Tanya).
The distribution was dedicated by a prominent Chabad Rabbi in memory of the senior elder of Chabad-Lubavitch rabbis and mentors in Israel, the renowned scholar Rabbi Tuvia Blau, o.b.m. (16 Iyar 5796 – 23 Tammuz 5786).
Rabbi Blau himself guided and advised the entire distribution project. In his final days, with complete clarity of mind, he ruled—in accordance with the Rebbe’s directives in such matters—that the work must be completed to merit all members of parliament. He emphasized reaching every representative regardless of political views or religious affiliation, utilizing appropriate and receptive communication.
List of Knesset Members and Public Figures:
MK Dvora (Debby) Biton – Yesh Atid
MK Mati Sarfatti Harkavi – Yesh Atid
MK Michal Shir Segman – Yesh Atid
MK Yasmin Sacks Friedman – Yesh Atid (Chair of the Special Committee for Holocaust Survivors)
MK Shelly Tal Meron – Yesh Atid
MK Hamad Amar – Yisrael Beiteinu
MK Yulia Malinovsky Kunin – Yisrael Beiteinu
MK Sharon Nir – Yisrael Beiteinu
MK Tsega (Tseganesh) Melaku – Likud
MK Adi Aliza Azouz – Yesh Atid
MK Eliyahu (Eli) Dallal – Likud
MK Aida Touma-Sliman – Hadash
MK Yasser Mahmoud Hujirat – Ra’am (Chair of the Science and Technology Committee)
MK Merav Ben-Ari – Yesh Atid (Chair of the Yesh Atid Faction & Opposition Coordinator)
Yuval Chen – Knesset Sergeant-at-Arms (former Head of the Security Department at the Ministry of Defense)
MK Samir Ben Said – Ta’al
MK Walid Khalil Al-Huwashla – Ra’am
MK Ofer Cassif – Hadash
MK Naama Lazimi – Labor (Chair of the Special Committee on Youth Affairs)
MK Dan Eliyahu Yaakov Illouz – Likud
Naftali Bennett – Chairman of the ‘Together’ party
Matan Kahana – Member of the ‘Yashar’ party
Yoez Hendel – Chairman of the ‘Miluimnikim’ (Reservists) party
MK Walid Yosef Taha – United Arab List (Ra’am)
MK Efrat Rayten Marom – Labor (Chair of the Labor Faction)
MK Iman Khatib-Alshin – United Arab List (Ra’am)
MK Yael Ron Ben-Moshe – Blue and White
MK Mohammad Abu al-Hija – Yesh Atid
Arabic Edition Presented to Arab Parliamentarians
In addition to the “Tanya HaShalem” set, Arab Members of Knesset were presented with a special copy of the Tanya translated into Arabic.
These Arabic copies were provided through the generosity of the sons of the late scholar Rabbi David Bouskila, o.b.m., who dedicated himself with immense effort to the translation project under the supervision of the renowned emissary to Morocco, Rabbi Yehuda Leib Raskin, o.b.m.. This effort was facilitated by his son, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Raskin, emissary to Côte-Saint-Luc, Montreal.
Upon arriving at the Knesset, Rabbi Wilhelm met the newly appointed Deputy Foreign Minister from the Right National party, MK Michel Bouskila, who was appointed that very morning. Rabbi Wilhelm presented him with a special copy of the Arabic Tanya, translated by his late relative, Rabbi David Bouskila (1932–2020), head of the Ozar Hatorah educational network in Morocco and France. The Deputy Minister was deeply moved and proudly shared the volume with his colleagues at the government table and coalition benches in the Knesset plenum.
Historical Background of the Arabic Translation
The translation of the Tanya into Arabic (specifically the Judeo-Moroccan dialect) began in November 1971 (Kislev 5732). Several years later, when the completed translation of Shaar HaYichud VeHaEmunah was presented to the Lubavitcher Rebbe, the editors received a rare and extraordinary response.
During a Chassidic gathering (Farbrengen) on Shabbos Parshas Shemos 1977 (5737)—published this past year by Vaad Hanochos B’Lashon Kodesh in a remarkable Divine Providence on the exact week this new edition appeared—the Rebbe expanded on the great significance of this Arabic edition. The Rebbe explained that this translation elevates not only those who speak the language, but effects a general refinement of all languages of the world as a preparation for the Era of Redemption, speedily in our days.
