Shas

Why Gadi Eisenkot is rejecting the haredi political embrace that once helped Netanyahu win

POLITICAL AFFAIRS: Yitzhak Yosef’s embrace – and Eisenkot's effort to distance himself from it – reflects Israel's shifting political landscape.

Amid reports that the Shas Party could be willing to sit with him in government, Yashar Party head Gadi Eisenkot did not rule out that option entirely. Here, Eisenkot attends the Sagi Laws for Equality Confrence at the Peres Center in Jaffa earlier this week.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi are seen in the Knesset plenum during a vote on the minister's communications reform, in Jerusalem, July 16, 2026

Netanyahu's coalition falls to 48 seats, opposition gets 62 seats after legislative blitz - poll

Shas chairman MK Arye Deri attends the State Comptroller elections at the plenum of the Knesset, in Jerusalem, June 3, 2026.

Shas leader Arye Deri accuses IDF chief of 'helping the Left' with ultra-Orthodox draft stance

 A voting box in the last Israeli election in 2015

Thinking about the Basic Law: Torah Study - opinion


Israel Police arrest suspect in arson attack on Jerusalem synagogue

Shas spiritual leader and former chief rabbi Yitzhak Yosef's home synagogue was set ablaze early Sunday morning.

 Head of Shas party Aryeh Deri and Shas spiritual leader Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef visit at the scene of suspected arson and vandalism at a Jerusalem synagogue which is often frequented by Rabbi Yosef, June 8, 2025.

Road to elections? Shas, Degel Hatorah will vote to dissolve Knesset, parties say

"The ultra-Orthodox public feels persecuted by the Likud and [MK Yuli] Edelstein," the Shas spokesperson said.

Shas faction leader MK Arye Deri seen outside the party offices in Jerusalem, June 4, 2025

Leading rabbi to instruct ultra-Orthodox faction to exit Netanyahu's coalition

Haredi leader hints at coalition exit over IDF draft bill delays, potentially collapsing the government.

 Rabbi Moshe Hillel Hirsch, pictured in 2014.

Shas ministers will support any deal that will bring home hostages, Ben-Tzur says

The remarks were noteworthy, as they contradicted those of other ministers and of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said that the ultimate goal of the war was victory over Hamas.

 Minister of Labour Yoav Ben Tzur at a presentation of the Poverty report for 2024, provided by National Insurance Institute, in Jerusalem, December 18, 2024.

Shas MK tiebreaking vote to extend reservist emergency call-ups

Shas MK Yinon Azulay cast the deciding vote to extend emergency IDF draft powers, sparking backlash over unclear war plans and coalition infighting.

 IDF soldiers operate in Deir el-Balah, Gaza Strip, May 8, 2025.

Haredi parties' Knesset boycott to continue for third straight week

This could change pending an assessment by haredi MKs later this week, according to one of the spokespersons.

 Haredi men are seen protesting the effort to draft ultra-Orthodox Israelis into the IDF.

How real is the haredi threat to topple the government? - analysis

Despite the growing calls, even within the coalition, for eligible haredi men to join the IDF, the reality on the ground has not changed very much.

 Anti-draft protests erupt in Jerusalem, May, 2025.

Confronting unprecedented change in the Haredi world - opinion

The question isn’t whether change will come – it’s already happening at the margins – but rather how deep it will penetrate into the core of haredi society.

 Illustrative: Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) Israeli Jews are seen engaging in Torah study.

Shas MKs partially retract calls in Knesset to launch state probe into October 7

Earlier on Wednesday, the two MKs called for a state probe during a Finance Committee meeting in the Knesset.

 Shas MK Yinon Azoulay seen in the Knesset plenum, in Jerusalem, July 22, 2024

Rabbi Kalman Bar appointed new Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi

The elections for Chief Rabbi are conducted by a 150-member statutory electoral body. The final tally was 77-58 in favor of Bar.

 Rabbi Kalman Bar