By, Jennifer Lipman
1 min read
ByJennifer Lipman, Jennifer Lipman
An extremist rabbi has been denied entry to Britain because of a book in which he allegedly justifies terrorist violence.
Rabbi Yosef Elitzur, from Israel, has been told he cannot enter the UK for three years because of his controversial 2009 book Law of the King. The rabbi said he had no plans to visit Britain when he received the letter.
His book, co-authored with Rabbi Yitzhak Shapira, looked at Jewish law and the rules of war, but also said Jews were permitted to kill non-Jews and claimed the Jews would "win" by "violence against the Arabs".
According to Israeli website the Jewish Voice, the Home Office told him anyone who wrote, published or distributed material "fomenting or justifying terrorist violence in furtherance of particular beliefs and seeking to provoke others to commit terrorist acts" would be excluded from Britain.
The letter said: "You are instructed not to travel to the UK as you will be refused admission on arrival."
A spokesman for the Home Office said: "We can confirm that Mr Elitzur has been excluded from the UK on grounds of unacceptable behaviour.
"The government will refuse people access to the UK if we believe they might seek to undermine our society. Coming here is a privilege that we refuse to extend to those who seek to subvert our shared values."
Rabbi Elitzur has also encountered problems for his writing in Israel. Police investigated it and the authors were arrested last year on suspicion of incitement to racism and violence.
A third edition of the book is set for publication in the near future.