Shas party fiercely rebuts accusations against Aryeh Deri, insisting his call to yeshiva students was about spiritual duty, not dodging the IDF draft.
In a fiery rebuttal to mounting criticism, the Shas party on Monday branded as “false libel” claims that party leader Aryeh Deri urged draft evasion. The ultra-Orthodox faction insists Deri’s words were an unshakable defense of Torah study — portraying it as the very backbone of Israel’s spiritual and national security.
According to Shas, Deri’s remarks came during a heartfelt address to Jerusalem yeshiva students aged 15–16, where he underscored that “Torah learning is the foundation of the Jewish people’s spiritual and security existence.” The party stressed that Deri, a veteran member of Israel’s Diplomatic-Security Cabinet, has long worked to safeguard the nation and protect IDF soldiers.
Shas pointed to the teachings of its late spiritual leader, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, who both blessed IDF soldiers and staunchly opposed harming Torah learners.
The controversy erupted after Deri told students at the Shaar Hamelech Yeshiva last week:
“G-d forbid, let no one here — especially in such a time when the Jewish people are in a state of war, may G-d protect us — think that maybe we need to reconsider, perhaps we should do something else, perhaps we should contribute, Heaven forbid.”
He later clarified, declaring that “it is you, the Torah learners, who bear the burden” — framing their study as a sacred service no less vital than the battlefield.
With tensions flaring between secular and religious sectors over military conscription, Shas’s statement is a clear warning: in their view, Israel’s survival hinges on both its soldiers and its scholars.
