Sharp tensions erupted within chareidi political circles after associates of Shas chairman Aryeh Deri issued a fierce response to remarks made by Degel HaTorah leader Moshe Gafni, dismissing him as irrelevant and sidelined from key decision-making.

The clash began during a radio interview Thursday night, when Gafni described what he called a division of responsibilities between himself and Deri.

“There’s a division of labor between me and Deri – he gets the jobs, and I deal with the principled issues.”

Deri’s associates quickly fired back with an unusually harsh statement, asserting that Gafni has effectively faded from the center of political activity in recent years while Deri has taken the lead on major decisions.

“In recent years, Deri has made all the decisions on the important issues, while Gafni has disappeared from public activity. MKs Yaakov Asher and Uri Maklev, along with the homes of the leading Lithuanian Torah sages, work and coordinate directly with Deri. Gafni is not in the loop. He doesn’t exist. From the perspective of the Lithuanian rabbinic leadership, Gafni is not part of the system. As far as they are concerned, he belongs to history.”

In the same interview, Gafni addressed a range of political matters, including the future alignment of chareidi parties. He indicated that the question of whether to continue partnering with the right-wing bloc could resurface in the next election cycle.

“In the next elections, the question posed to the great Torah sages will be whether to continue on this path with the right wing.”

Gafni also revealed that Naftali Bennett had approached him upon reentering political life, seeking cooperation with the chareidi parties, but ultimately shifted direction.

“When he realized that spot was already taken, he went to the other side”.

He further suggested that cooperation with opposition figures may not be off the table, noting a perceived change in tone from Avigdor Lieberman.

“You don’t hear him so much anymore today. He’s no longer really attacking. He was with us in the municipal elections; he would ask me things. It’s a different situation. He’s not Yair Lapid.”

On the contentious draft law, Gafni said the current proposal remains problematic and would ultimately require approval from senior rabbinic authorities.

“The law itself has problems and is very difficult to implement. It needs to go before the leading Torah authorities, and they will decide”.

Regarding a potential joint run with Agudas Yisrael, he confirmed that discussions are ongoing but emphasized that the final decision rests with the gedolim.

“Just today there was a meeting about it. We sat for several hours, and the leading Torah sages are the ones who will decide.”

Turning to other political rivals, Gafni criticized Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir, questioning their conduct and priorities.

“The minister Smotrich made every effort to take care of himself. As for what helped us or not – we can talk about that in the next term. Ben-Gvir makes a lot of political noise. If a chareidi wants to vote for him, he should know he is going up to the Har Habayis with him.”

Asked about his party’s achievements, Gafni declined to provide details, arguing that each accomplishment is quickly challenged in court.

“On every achievement, a petition is filed against it. Just now I transferred one and a half billion to chareidi education and we fought over it in the High Court.”

{Matzav.com}