Deri accuses Yishai of not helping the poor

By GIL STERN STERN HOFFMAN
Former Shas leader Arye Deri slammed his successor, Industry, Trade and Labor Minister Eli Yishai, on Tuesday, accusing him of not doing enough to help the party's poor voters. Deri, who has been mentioned as a possible candidate for Jerusalem mayor, had not attacked Yishai for several years, despite a history of bad blood between the two. "Over the past few years, I think the socioeconomic issue has been emphasized less in Shas and given less weight," Deri said in an interview with the Knesset Channel. "The cutbacks have hit people really hard. I would expect Shas to better represent their voters, who are the weakest sectors of the population and who don't get what they deserve." Yishai's spokesman declined to respond.