Israel’s ultra-Orthodox Shas party on Saturday night vehemently rejected reports saying that it had agreed to join a coalition led by Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar faction, labeling them “complete fake news.”
Shas is part of Israel’s right-wing bloc, “which loves the Torah and Jewish tradition,” according to a party statement. Shas secured six Knesset seats in Israel’s Oct. 27 election.
“We reiterate that only official statements from Shas are authoritative, not reports by journalists or tweeters,” the statement read.
ש״ס בהודעה:
— אריה מכלוף דרעי (@ariyederi) November 7, 2026
בניגוד לדיווחים השקריים שמפיצים הערב עיתונאים שונים בנוגע להצטרפותה כביכול של ש״ס לממשלת אייזנקוט, מדובר בפייק ניוז מוחלט. כפי שהורתה מועצת חכמי התורה, ש״ס היא חלק מגוש הימין, אוהבי התורה והמסורת היהודית.
אנו שבים ומזכירים כי רק הודעות רשמיות של ש״ס הן הקובעות ולא…
Shas said that its position on the subject was set by its Council of Torah Sages, the party’s supreme rabbinical and decision-making body. Israel’s former Chief Sephardi Rabbi Ovadia Yosef served as the council’s president until his death in 2013.
The reports of Shas potentially joining an Eisenkot government first emerged on Saturday in a report by Israel’s Channel 12 News.
The haredi party would not put obstacles in the way of an Eisenkot-led government if such a government were supported by the ultra-Orthodox United Judaism Torah party, according to the report.
Shas chairman Aryeh Deri has reportedly refused to engage with representatives from the so-called change bloc, but Channel 12 cited a source within the Council of Torah Sages as saying that if an agreement were reached between the UJT and Eisenkot’s coalition, Shas would not object.
Following two days of consultations last week between Israeli President Isaac Herzog and the parties elected to the 26th Knesset, Eisenkot had secured the support of 67 incoming Knesset members, while Netanyahu was backed by 46. The UJT party’s seven lawmakers declined to recommend either candidate.
Herzog announced on Saturday night that he would grant Eisenkot the mandate to form Israel’s next government. Under Basic Law: The Government, Eisenkot will have 28 days to form a coalition. Herzog can extend that by up to 14 days.
However, Eisenkot’s 67 recommendations do not amount to a prospective governing coalition. They include the 19 lawmakers from the Joint List (composed of three predominantly Arab factions) and Ra’am, another Arab party, while Avigdor Liberman, the chairman of Yisrael Beiteinu, has ruled out joining a government dependent on either Arab faction.
On Friday, Liberman said that he is prepared to compromise on legislation governing haredi military conscription, marking a significant shift from his election campaign promises.
“The election results require all of us to recalculate our route and understand that there are no good alternatives or magic solutions before us,” Liberman wrote on X.
“In the political reality that has been created, national responsibility requires us to make difficult decisions and be prepared for painful compromises,” he said.
Liberman maintained three red lines: ending Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s tenure, avoiding another election and refusing to establish a government dependent on the abstention in votes of no-confidence of the Joint List or Ra’am.
