shas

Young Orthodox Israelis wave flags during the annual Jerusalem Day Flag March outside Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City, May 15, 2021. (Keren Manor/Activestills)

The radicalizing rebellion of Israel’s Haredi youth

Once staunch anti-Zionists, Haredi parties have become ensconced in the Israeli right. Now, a generation of disenfranchised Haredi youth is defying its elders and seeking meaning in the most extreme forms of supremacism.

By Pnina Pfeuffer October 31, 2022

Prime Minister Netanyahu attends a joint event of the Knesset and the U.S. Congress, at the Chagall state hall in the Knesset, Jerusalem, June 7, 2017. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Netanyahu can count on U.S. Jews to stay silent on the occupation

The prime minister sparked controversy when he announced he wouldn’t be speaking at the biggest Jewish American event of the year. But Bibi knows that no matter what, American Jews won’t speak out against his occupation policies. Prime Minister Netanyahu knows that no matter what, he can count on American Jews not to speak out against…

By Joshua Leifer October 31, 2017

Yom LeYom, the Shas party's weekly paper, airbrushes the three female ministers out of the government portrait.

Ultra-Orthodox paper photoshops women out of gov’t portrait

Yom-LeYom, the official weekly of the Shas party, published the traditional group portrait of the cabinet and the president this morning — with one notable amendment: Ministers Miri Regev (Culture), Ayelet Shaked (Justice) and Gila Gamliel (Immigrant Absorption and, you guessed it, Gender Equality) were all airbrushed out. Here is the original: And here is…

By Dimi Reider May 21, 2015

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Shas MK Yitzhak Vaknin at the J Street conference, October 1, 2013 (Photo: JStreetdotorg)

Has Shas’s attitude toward refugees evolved?

The former Shas chairman was one of the most vocal opponents of African refugees in Israel. But after Yishai was replaced, the party’s attitudes may have changed. +972 speaks to Shas MK Yitzhak Vaknin. By Aaron Magid Just over a year ago, then Shas chairman and Interior Minister Eli Yishai declared that until he could…

By +972 Magazine October 9, 2013

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. (photo: Kobi Gideon/GPO)

Referendum on peace agreement just might pass

The first reaction of the Israeli Right to the possible revival of Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations has been to rush legislation ensuring a referendum on a future agreement. The idea is to supplement Israel’s 2010 law with provisions that tailor it to apply to any kind of agreement (the existing law passed in 2010 is somewhat…

By Dahlia Scheindlin July 23, 2013

A Palestinian shepherd tends his flocks near the Israeli separation wall close to the Bethlehem checkpoint, August 25, 2012. The Israeli barrier and settlements have rendered 85% of Bethlehem Governorate's agricultural lands off-limits to Palestinian use. (photo: RRB/Activestills.org)

Cracks in the wall: A glimmer of hope for Israel-Palestine

From up close, a wall can seem smooth, unbreakable and infinite – it is the only thing in sight. The wall, a wall of despair or a wall of separation, is real. But by taking a few steps back, either physically or spiritually, cracks in the wall can come into sight. By Moriel Rothman I’ve been in the…

By +972 Magazine March 15, 2013

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu [file photo], Amos Ben-Gershom/GPO

With Livni as his fig leaf, Bibi can now form an extremist government

After signing Tzipi Livni onto his coalition, Netanyahu doesn’t need Yair Lapid anymore – he can have the haredim and Naftali Bennett while pacifying Obama. Give the devil his due: Bibi pulled off a masterstroke yesterday by signing Tzipi Livni’s Hatnuah party to his coalition. Now he’s got clear sailing to his ideal government…

By Larry Derfner February 20, 2013

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu in the cabinet, Nov. 18, 2012 (Photo: Kobi Gideon / GPO)

What will the third Netanyahu government look like, and how will it deal with the Palestinian issue?

Netanyahu would like to include some centrist elements in his government in order to present a more moderate face to the world. However, any meaningful effort to end the occupation is not very likely. The Israeli post-election routine is under way, and tomorrow (Saturday) night, President Shimon Peres will officially ask Benjamin Netanyahu to try and…

By Noam Sheizaf February 1, 2013

Yair Lapid (photo: Yotam Ronen / Activestills.org)

Ten post-election, pre-coalition takeaways

There’s no doubt about it – Yair Lapid is the star of these election results. His 19 mandates will most certainly give him and his party a senior position in the next government, likely to be led by Benjamin Netanyahu. But before you go reporting about the upcoming Bibi-Lapid coalition, here are a few post-election…

By Ami Kaufman January 25, 2013

Leader of the National Religious Party ("Jewish Home") Naftali Bennett (photo: Yotam Ronen / activestills.org)

Final elections results posted; settler party rises to 12 seats

The counting of the votes has ended, and we now have the official results for the 2013 Knesset elections. In the last 24 hours Naftali Bennett’s Jewish Home party has won one more seat at the expense of the United Arab List. The rest of the map is unchanged. Here are the full results: Likud…

By Noam Sheizaf January 24, 2013

Final Israeli elections poll: Netanyahu’s bloc with a clear majority

The last polls ahead of Tuesday’s election have been published. Netanyahu’s Likud-Beitenu joint ticket could lose as many as eight seats, but the right-wing coalition he is projected to lead is still strong. Meretz is trending up, while Livni is losing support. We have updated out Poll Tracker with the surveys published over the weekend.…

By Noam Sheizaf January 19, 2013

Orthodox Jews (premasagarCC BY NC 2.0)

Why no Israeli government will ever impose mandatory IDF service on the ultra-Orthodox

Compulsory military service for yeshiva students is a popular issue for secular politicians. But Shas and other Orthodox parties will continue to get their way on this issue, partly because of Israel’s fragmented electoral system, but also largely because Zionism depends on the haredim for its raison d’être. By Steven A. Cook Washington — Last week…

By +972 Magazine January 19, 2013

Campaign video decrying intermarriage is labeled racist

With national elections less than two weeks away, political campaign videos are much in the news. A few days ago Noam Sheizaf wrote about the Balad party video that was banned, allegedly for mocking Hatikvah, the national anthem. Now Shas, the Mizrachi ultra-Orthodox party that is predominantly Moroccan, is getting some heat for a campaign…

By Lisa Goldman January 9, 2013