Binyamin Netanyahu with Shas head Aryeh Deri
Binyamin Netanyahu with Shas head Aryeh DeriMiriam Alster/Flash 90

Shas Chairman Aryeh Deri announced Monday that he would support Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu after March 17 election - on one major condition. 

Deri stated that he would join a coalition led by Netanyahu, but only if the government agrees to accept Shas's conditions, which revolve mostly around the issue of fighting poverty. 

"Two years ago I declared from every platform that we support Netanyahu-Netanyahu-Netanyahu until my throat was hoarse and raspy," Deri said during an event in Kiryat Motzkin. "And what happened? He left us on the outside." 

"This time we will not enter any government, at all costs. We have extremely strict social conditions: a minimum wage of 30 shekels, lowering VAT on basic commodities, and taxing the rich," Deri stressed. 

"We'll go with anyone who can offer this to us - and certainly we have a preference for Netanyahu because our constituents want Netanyahu." 

"But I say to Netanyahu, if you do not go along with our conditions, your will not be prime minster," Deri charged.  

Interestingly, almost a year ago, Deri said that he would support Labor leader Yitzhak Herzog and do anything to bring down the Netanyahu government in response to the haredi draft law.