understanding what makes people say........

Help me understand

Yosef made the comments in his weekly sermon on Saturday night. "Is it a wonder that soldiers who don't observe the Torah, don't pray every day and don't put on tefilin every day are killed in war? It is no wonder


Rabbi Ovadia Yosef is the founder of the religious party Shas. His influence in Israel is immense both for religious and less well educated superstitious people. The Shas party members even go to the rabbi to ask him how to vote on important issues.


It is not surprising that people were outraged by his comments so much so that I will not even quote condemnations from the whose who of Israeli politics.


However what I wish to understand is why he made these comments. The leader of the Shas party Eli Yishai defended him saying that the rabbi quoted from Gemara (biblical interpretations from the bible by famous rabbis of the past) he goes on to say "When a soldier is killed the rabbi sheds tears, he cries, he gathers everyone together and says "let us pray." Every one of us is commanded and obligated to pray and observe the Torah and commandments for the sake of the IDF soldiers. When a soldier is wounded we view this as the fault of all the people of Israel who need to repent,"


I try to understand what motivation would make him issue such a statement. I assume that he is intelligent enough to understand the reprocutions of what he said. Why should he wish to hurt thousands of families (all those close to those who died in the war) and the sensitivity of the vast majority of Israelis. To be honest I cannot find a good answer. I hope someone can help me understand by adding a comment. Thanks

Israeli Soldier Killed to Save Schoolchildren Learned Love of Jewish People at Lycee Sha’alvim in Ukraine
October 30, 1998 - Sgt. Alexei Nikov, who was killed when his Israeli army jeep thwarted a terrorist attack against a busload of 40 Israeli schoolchildren, learned his love of Judaism and commitment to the Jewish People and Israel at the Orthodox Union’s Joseph K. Miller Torah Center in his hometown of Kharkov, in the Ukraine.
The 19-year-old immigrated to Israel two years ago after graduating from the Lycee Sha’alvim, a yeshiva in Kharkov which is a joint project of the Orthodox Union’s Joseph K. Miller Torah Center and Yeshivat Sha’alvim.
Though his parents are Jewish, Alexei had no knowledge of his Jewish roots or heritage before entering the Lycee. His commitment to Israel, and his decision to make aliyah, were a direct result of the education he received at the Lycee.
The Orthodox Union joins the world in mourning the tragic loss of this courageous soldier who willingly sacrificed his young life to preserve the future of the Jewish people he so loved.

What can u say about this guy-did he also die because........Sorry I didn't intend to do this it is so obvious that what he said is rubbish!!!