Israeli religious-right party wants 'In God we trust' written on shekel notes

Israel's religious right-wing Shas party submitted a parliamentary bill on Tuesday, calling for the words "In God we trust" to be written in Hebrew on Israeli banknotes.

The proposal would see word "Hashem" used to avoid the taboo of deleting the written name of God, according to The Times of Israel.

The Shas lawmakers said including the phrase on shekel notes would be a "talisman for the economic success of Israel".

The phrase is printed on US banknotes and became the official motto of the country in 1956.

Shas is part of the current far-right governing coalition in Israel but suffered a setback recently when leader Aryeh Deri was sacked from his ministerial positions by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu following a Supreme Court ruling.

Israeli media said it is not clear if the coalition government will support Shas' proposal. Shas won nearly 9 percent of the vote in the 2022 election, winning eight seats.

The party has attracted many working-class Sephardic and Mizrahi Haredi Jews, arguing for a greater representation for the marginalised group which has largely been ignored by Israel's political parties.

This inclusion of the ultra-Orthodox bloc and other religious far-right groups has caused worry among secular Israelis, from both the right and left, who fear attacks on women's and LGBTQ+ rights.

Palestinians are concerned about an all-out assault on them by the new government. The West Bank has already seen 29 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces this year.

On Thursday at least nine Palestinians were killed and many more injured in a brutal Israeli massacre in Jenin.

Before November's election Bezalel Smotrich, head of the far-right Religious Zionism party, said he wanted Jewish law to dictate the government's financial policy.

Avigdor Liberman, a parliamentarian for the secular far-right Yisrael Beytenu party, slammed the proposal by Shas.

"What next? Will they ask to put a picture of Deri on each banknote?” he tweeted.