The Shas party's recent insistence that the government allow new construction in the Givat Zev neighborhood in eastern Jerusalem represents a trend toward shifting to a more nationalist view in order to attract voters from other parties, according to an analysis in the Christian Science Monitor.

In an article titled Israel's "Religious Right Gains Clout, Complicating Peace with Palestinians," the newspaper reported that the Shas demand "points to a palpable rightward shift in Shas, a party that used to be considered moderate and amenable to the land-for-peace formula on which any solution to the conflict is based." It added that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert "decided to remove the barriers to several already-in-the-works settlement projects and to allow Shas to take the credit" in order to prevent Shas from quitting the coalition and toppling the government.

"Over the past decade, following the Al Aqsa Intifada and the breakdown in Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, Shas has swung right," the article continued. "This may be in part an effort by Shas to boost its standing among more nationalist Israeli voters, regardless of ethnic origin. This trend suggests that Shas is working to attract supporters away from the right-wing Likud as well as the National Religious Party, both of which have been socked in recent years with a significant loss of Knesset, or parliament, seats and political prestige."