Shas chairman Aryeh Deri issued one of his most forceful public statements to date on Sunday, accusing Israel’s legal establishment of persecuting Torah learners and warning that continued sanctions against yeshiva students could lead to tax resistance, a breakdown in cooperation with police, and a widening rift between the chareidi public and state authorities.

The unusually sharp remarks reflected growing tensions within the right-wing coalition as disputes over military conscription and penalties against yeshiva students continue to escalate.

At the start of his statement, Deri took direct aim at Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, accusing her of spearheading an aggressive campaign against the Torah world.

“The dismissed and anarchist attorney general is racing ahead with arrests and harsh sanctions against Torah learners. She is pushing the chareidi public to the edge.”

Deri warned that the current course of action would not be accepted quietly and could trigger unprecedented acts of civil disobedience.

“This will lead to a tax revolt, a disconnect from the police, and a deep rupture with state authorities. Anyone who cares about the future of the country must rise up against this madness.”

A significant portion of Deri’s criticism was directed at his coalition allies. He argued that leaders of Likud, Religious Zionism, and Otzma Yehudit have failed to defend the chareidi community as pressure on yeshivos and Torah students intensifies.

“I cry out and warn the prime minister and the leaders of the right-wing parties: If you truly want the right-wing bloc to survive, you must stand firmly against this persecution. Your voices are not being heard!”

Deri concluded by invoking the well-known phrase “Silence is filth,” insisting that Shas expects concrete action rather than sympathetic statements.

“It is unacceptable that we should become the punching bag of this government, that everything sacred and precious to the Jewish people should be harmed, while you stand by and remain silent.”

Political observers viewed the statement as one of Deri’s strongest warnings yet, aimed at increasing pressure on Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu to resolve the military draft dispute and address the financial challenges facing yeshivos. Some analysts suggested the comments were also intended to underscore the potential consequences for coalition stability if the issue remains unresolved.

Government Secretary Yossi Fuchs joined the criticism, arguing that the current enforcement policy is damaging efforts to integrate more chareidim into military service.

“The IDF needs chareidi soldiers, not chareidi detainees in prison facilities. As I have warned all along, the attorney general’s campaign against the chareidi public, which grows more severe every week—from demands for arrest quotas, to efforts to block even donations to yeshivos (which currently receive no state funding for draft-age students), and even demands for indictment quotas—will ultimately reduce chareidi enlistment in the IDF, turn the entire chareidi public into the Jerusalem Faction, and, Heaven forbid, even lead to a civil war.”

Fuchs also argued that the legal measures are being enforced selectively. He noted that after the expiration of the legal framework that had exempted many yeshiva students from military service, Torah learners suddenly found themselves facing criminal liability for not enlisting.

“Let us remember that until the expiration of Chapter G1 of the Security Service Law, which led for the first time in the state’s history to Torah scholars in chareidi yeshivos—including the most dedicated learners—awakening to the reality that failing to enlist in the IDF constitutes a criminal offense, we did not see any comparable criminal enforcement by the attorney general against draft evaders who were not from the chareidi community. There were no arrest operations, no sanctions, and nothing of the sort. This is not equal enforcement. On the contrary, it is selective, agenda-driven, and improper enforcement.”

Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister Yariv Levin also voiced support for Deri’s position and called for an immediate response from coalition leaders.

“I join MK Rabbi Aryeh Deri’s call not to remain silent any longer. For a long time, I have been urging the government and coalition to unite, rise above internal disagreements, and put an end to the discriminatory judicial anarchy under which many sectors of society are being trampled.”

Levin further called for an emergency gathering of right-wing party leaders to formulate a coordinated response.

“I call for an urgent meeting of the leaders of the right-wing bloc. The time has come for us to adopt a series of practical decisions that will return control of the state to the government and put an end to judicial anarchy.”