The Shas party responds to Eli Yishai's announcement that his party will not run in the upcoming elections and is transferring its support to United Torah Judaism.
"Shas, under the leadership of the Council of Torah Sages and the leadership of Maran Chacham Shalom Cohen, and at the initiative of the movement's chairman, Minister Aryeh Deri, worked very hard to achieve a full unity of the Sephardi public around the movement of Maran Rabbeinu Ovadia Yosef. To this end, we also appointed the son of Maran, the Gaon Rabbi David Yosef, as a special emissary to the head of Yeshivat Kirsch Rachamim, Rabbi Moshe Mazuz, in order to advance this. "Unfortunately, all our efforts for peace were rejected and they chose a different path."