BREAKING NEWS

Deri, under criminal investigation, asks his followers not to rebel

Interior Minister Arye Deri called upon his loyalists in Shas on Sunday to refrain from starting a campaign professing his innocence similar to the one that accompanied his unsuccessful effort to avoid jail time the last time he was investigated.
Before Deri began serving two years of a three-year sentence for bribery and breach of trust, he was at the center of a campaign under the slogan "He is innocent" that included rallies and songs. When he entered prison in 2000, his followers started a yeshiva outside the facility.
But his associates decided that Deri would be best served this time by remaining quiet and continuing to do his job. He wrote a letter Sunday giving instructions to his loyalist.
"I ask you not to get involved," Deri wrote. "Leave it for people who have that job."
Deri said that he and his family were enduring challenging times, and he was sure his supporters were as well.