Shas chairman Aryeh Deri held a tense meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last Wednesday, amid a fresh coalition review of legislation demanded by ultra-Orthodox parties, including the bill to cancel arrests and the Basic Law: Torah Study.
According to sources in the Prime Minister’s Office, the exchange grew heated. Deri sharply criticized Netanyahu over the conduct of officials in his office regarding the push for the bills, and said he was frustrated by how the government has been dealing with the ultra-Orthodox factions in recent weeks.
The friction reflects rising dissatisfaction among leaders of the ultra-Orthodox parties. In private conversations in recent days, senior ultra-Orthodox figures have accused the prime minister of being too detached from coalition management. “Netanyahu is not in the loop,” they said. “He is fully absorbed in the crisis with Trump and the Lebanon issue, and there is no one now managing what is happening in the coalition.”
It was also reported that Deri was not told in advance about a coalition leaders’ meeting scheduled for tonight at 6:00 p.m., and learned about it only through the media.
