Shas Leader Tells Finance Minister: Prioritise Coalition Deals Over Ideology

Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef, leader of the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, has urged Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich to focus on securing coalition priorities rather than pursuing contentious ideological battles. In a letter to Smotrich, Yosef called on him to identify and advance issues important to the Likud party in order to prevent risks to key legislation, particularly laws protecting Torah study subsidies and maintaining Israel’s kashrut (Jewish dietary law) regulations. “There is no room for delay,” Yosef wrote, following a separate appeal from Smotrich himself.

The correspondence reflects tensions within Benjamin Netanyahu’s governing coalition over competing legislative priorities. Shas, which represents a significant portion of the ultra-Orthodox electorate, is particularly concerned about preserving state funding for religious education and protecting religious authority over kosher certification — both fundamental issues for its constituency.

Following Yosef’s letter, a formal Knesset motion is expected to be filed in the coming days. The Shas party has signalled it will support a controversial Broadcasting Law, apparently as part of broader coalition horse-trading. This suggests the party leadership is willing to make strategic compromises on some legislation in exchange for protecting their core interests around religious affairs and education funding.

The episode underscores how Israel’s coalition governments function through negotiation and trade-offs between ideologically diverse parties, each prioritising different legislative goals. For ultra-Orthodox parties like Shas, maintaining financial support for yeshivas and religious autonomy remains paramount, even if it means compromising on other parliamentary votes.

Source: Ynet — Original article in Hebrew.