Shas rabbis postpone meeting on Deri's future as party denies he resigned

The Council of Torah Sages, Shas's rabbinic leadership, postponed a meeting set for Wednesday on the future of party chairman Aryeh Deri, Kikar HaShabbat reported. The session was to be held at a private home in Jerusalem and was called off at the last minute, reportedly because of disagreements among council members.

JDN reported, citing sources, that the council would not convene Wednesday after a Shas statement and a request from Rabbi Avraham Salim to postpone. A new date had not been reported.

Deri has not formally stepped down. Shas issued a statement saying reports that Deri informed the council by letter of his resignation from the Knesset and the party leadership are untrue. JDN had reported earlier in the day that he submitted such a letter that morning. Kikar HaShabbat reported that the council's position is that Deri is not permitted to step down as leader of Shas.

Shas won six seats in the 26th Knesset election, down from 11. Deri has rarely been seen in public since the results became known, Kikar HaShabbat reported.

What Deri reportedly said

According to Matzav, which cited several Israeli outlets, Deri told rabbis that he is tired of leading the movement and no longer has the strength, and that the decision reflects concerns he had held for some time and not only the election result.

The rabbis have pushed back. Matzav reported that Rishon LeTzion Rabbi David Yosef and council members Rabbi Avraham Salim, Rabbi Shmuel Betzalel and Rabbi Yehuda Cohen visited Deri's home to urge him to stay. Former Sephardi chief rabbi Yitzhak Yosef published a letter praising Deri's dedication and the nearly 300,000 people who voted for Shas, Matzav said. Arutz Sheva reported that a separate letter backing Deri's continued leadership was being drafted by Rabbi Moshe Maya, a senior council member.

Not everyone is pushing him to stay

Channel 14 reported that some party officials see the resignation talk as an attempt to win renewed backing, while others have discussed replacing him. Unnamed senior Shas figures told the channel that Deri is repeating a 2014 move, when he tendered his resignation, rabbis came to his home and it was not accepted. Arutz Sheva said the report does not establish Deri's intent.

MK Yaakov Margi, who leaves the Knesset after 24 years, told i24NEWS that Deri "had good intentions" and that asking him to resign now would effectively shut the party down. Margi said he was not surprised by the result and that Shas had blurred its identity, Arutz Sheva reported.

Kan reported that party strategists focused on competing with Otzma Yehudit while Shas voters moved toward Likud, according to Matzav.

What it could mean

The Council of Torah Sages has the final say on Shas's leadership. If it holds that Deri may not resign, a clean exit is hard to arrange unless the council itself agrees to one.

Yedioth Ahronoth reported that Deri is weighing three paths: retiring completely and appointing new leadership; resigning his Knesset seat but running the party from outside parliament; or taking a senior "party president" role with ultimate authority while another figure serves as chairman and runs day-to-day affairs.

Commentators have floated versions of the second and third. According to JDN, political commentator Amit Segal estimated that Deri would leave the Knesset but remain party chairman, and reporter Yossi Elituv said that even if Deri stays on he would work remotely and behind the scenes, with key powers passing to MKs Yinon Azulai and Michael Malkieli.

The 2014 episode is the precedent his critics cite. It suggests rabbinic pressure to stay can end a resignation. It does not show that the same will happen now.