A Shas Asifa held in the Beis Yisrael Hall in Yerushalayim on Tuesday night the eve of 21 Kislev 5773 did not pass peacefully as there were jeers and shouts of anger, a visible sign that the recently praised party achdus was breaking apart at the seams. Towards the end of the event, the verbal assaults shifted gear to physical violence and targeted were two nephew of Shas leader Eli Yishai. Tensions between party activists in the Deri and Yishai camps continues to rise and the party prepares to announce its lineup for Knesset, each waiting to see who receives the number one position from Maran HaGaon HaRav Ovadia Yosef Shlita.

Yishai and the other party leaders had already left the event, and when he heard what had occurred, instructed his driver to return to the hall. Yishai assisted one nephew, transporting him to the emergency room of Shaare Zedek Medical Center in his vehicle. A second nephew, who was more seriously injured in the attack, was transported by ambulance. The nephew who required hospitalization for his injuries reportedly passed out for a period of time, telling Yishai after being hit he simply does not remember what took place. Later in the night he was transported to Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital.

Kikar Shabbat reports the deputy prime minister was at his beside for a period of time, and he released a statement decrying “the tremendous chilul Hashem” that occurred, vowing that people seeking to simply stir the pot and cause disunity in the party would be ousted.

Spokesmen for both Yishai and party co-leader Aryeh Deri released statements condemning the attacks, adding such behavior will not be tolerated and the responsible persons would be ousted from the party.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)