The sharp attack on Ben-Gvir by Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef, released by Shas on Friday, marks the beginning of a strategy planned for the final weeks of the election campaign.
Shas has grown increasingly concerned about Otzma Yehudit's rising support among ultra-Orthodox and traditional Jewish voters, including young people raised on the teachings of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, the late Sephardi chief rabbi and spiritual leader of Shas.
With less than three weeks remaining until the elections, the party intends to intensify its battle for these votes.
Rabbis, led by Yitzhak Yosef, are expected to spearhead the attacks on Ben-Gvir, while Shas lawmakers remain in the background. The strategy aims to win back voters who have gravitated toward Otzma Yehudit by emphasizing Shas's commitment to Ovadia Yosef's religious legacy.
Sources familiar with the campaign said the strategy had been prepared well in advance, but the party decided to reserve its strongest messages for the final two weeks before the elections.
Party officials feared that launching the attacks too early would diminish their impact amid the constant developments and campaign activity leading up to the vote, weakening their effectiveness just as voters prepare to head to the polls.
The anniversary of Ovadia Yosef's death is expected to serve as the starting point for a series of statements and campaign initiatives that will continue through Election Day.
According to the sources, the latest attack marks the beginning of a broader escalation, with criticism of Ben-Gvir expected to continue and intensify.
Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef attacks Ben-Gvir over Temple Mount visits
On Friday, Shas circulated remarks by Yitzhak Yosef criticizing Ben-Gvir for his visits to the Temple Mount, which violate the religious rulings of Israel's chief rabbis, particularly those of Yosef's father.
"There are people who speak and attract young people with all kinds of slogans, but what do they actually do? Nothing. Just talk, talk, and the young people get excited," the rabbi said.
Yosef recalled warning against ascending the Temple Mount during his weekly lecture at the Yazdim Synagogue, only for Ben-Gvir to visit the site the following day.
"I have warned several times that it is forbidden to ascend the Temple Mount. I said this on Saturday night during my lecture at Yazdim. The next day, deliberately, that Ben-Gvir went up to the Temple Mount, against the position of all the great Torah sages of Israel from every community," he said.
He continued: "How can we give power to a person like this, who openly, with arrogance and contempt, defies and disrespects all the great Torah sages of Israel and ascends the Temple Mount like that? God forbid that we should support such a person."
The remarks also reflect Yitzhak Yosef's personal anger toward Ben-Gvir.
During a Torah scroll dedication ceremony held at the home of his son-in-law, Rabbi Baruch Deri, Yosef sharply criticized the national security minister.
Sources who attended the event said the remarks were spontaneous, unlike a similar earlier attack that had been coordinated in advance.
In portions of his remarks omitted from the video distributed by Shas, Yosef called Ben-Gvir "insolent" and "brazen," accusing him of deliberately visiting the Temple Mount immediately after the rabbi had publicly warned against doing so.
"I speak at the Yazdim Synagogue on Saturday night, and on Sunday morning he ascends with brazenness, openly showing that he disrespects all the great Torah sages of the generation and the chief rabbis throughout the generations," he said.
According to the sources, Yosef views Ben-Gvir's conduct as a deliberate challenge to rabbinical authority, and his remarks reflected genuine anger.
Those close to the rabbi see Ben-Gvir's visits to the Temple Mount as an act of defiance against Ovadia Yosef's legacy.
Their frustration centers particularly on the possibility that young Sephardi voters, who grew up following Ovadia Yosef's religious rulings, could support a politician who publicly encourages an act the rabbi prohibited.
Yitzhak Yosef criticizes Ben-Gvir for publicly defying rabbinical rulings
Sources familiar with the campaign explained that Yitzhak Yosef draws a distinction between an individual who violates Jewish law, which he considers a matter between that person and God, and a public figure who openly encourages others to disregard rabbinical rulings.
In Yosef's view, encouraging visits to the Temple Mount sends a message to young people who see Ben-Gvir as an appealing political figure.
According to the sources, Yosef is particularly troubled by the prospect of followers of Ovadia Yosef, and those raised on his teachings, voting for someone who openly disregards his religious rulings.
Sources familiar with the campaign stressed that the attacks would focus on Ben-Gvir's statements and conduct on religious and public matters, while avoiding personal attacks by politicians.
Yosef's son-in-law, Rabbi Baruch Deri, is considered one of the leading advocates of a hard line against Ben-Gvir within the rabbi's inner circle.
Under the strategy, Yitzhak Yosef's statements will remain a prominent part of the campaign throughout the remaining weeks before the elections. Any additional statement or action by Ben-Gvir perceived as defying rabbinical authority could trigger further criticism.
Those involved in the effort want to keep the confrontation focused on Jewish law and public affairs rather than turn it into a daily exchange of attacks between politicians.
Shas fights to retain young Sephardi voters amid growing support for Ben-Gvir
Shas's concerns are supported by recent polling data.
In a poll conducted by the Midgam Institute, headed by Mano Geva, for Channel 12 News and published last month, 13% of young first-time voters who identified as ultra-Orthodox expressed support for Otzma Yehudit, compared with 20% for Shas and 45% for United Torah Judaism.
While the figures do not establish that voters are shifting directly from Shas to Ben-Gvir, they illustrate the competition for support among younger ultra-Orthodox voters.
Shas also relies on traditional Jewish voters who are not ultra-Orthodox, a constituency Ben-Gvir has sought to attract through messages emphasizing national security, nationalism, and criticism of the ultra-Orthodox leadership.
Unlike United Torah Judaism, whose support comes primarily from ultra-Orthodox voters, Shas draws a significant share of its backing from traditional voters who do not necessarily vote for the party consistently.
Researchers of ultra-Orthodox society have previously estimated that several of Shas's Knesset seats depend on support from this population, making competition for these voters particularly important to the party.
Ben-Gvir, meanwhile, has rejected the criticism and accused the ultra-Orthodox parties of attempting to divert attention from their own conduct.
In a public letter to their leaders, he claimed that the parties had failed to address the needs of the ultra-Orthodox community and portrayed their attacks on him as an attempt to conceal those failures.
Ben-Gvir has sought to position Otzma Yehudit as an alternative for ultra-Orthodox voters dissatisfied with their political representatives, arguing that his party has worked to advance issues important to them.
The confrontation has also intensified over the arrests of yeshiva students, who have faced enforcement measures related to their military service obligations.
Yitzhak Yosef accused Ben-Gvir of bearing responsibility for the arrests and claimed that he was seeking to gain politically from them.
Ben-Gvir rejected the accusations and placed responsibility on other officials.
Shas emphasizes its role in preserving Jewish tradition amid election battle with Ben-Gvir
Shas is now seeking to counter Ben-Gvir's criticism of the ultra-Orthodox leadership by emphasizing its role in preserving Jewish tradition.
In remarks circulated Friday, Yitzhak Yosef said, "Only the Shas movement is capable of preserving tradition here in the country."
He also recalled his father's words: "Maran used to describe the Shas movement as being like the mezuzah of the state. There is a state, and the state has a mezuzah."
The remarks are aimed at Sephardi voters whom Ben-Gvir is seeking to attract, emphasizing the connection between supporting Shas and remaining committed to Ovadia Yosef's approach to Jewish law.
Shas intends to continue highlighting Yitzhak Yosef's statements until the elections.
After holding back its strongest criticism until the final stretch of the campaign, the party is preparing a series of messages from religious leaders to accompany the remaining weeks before voters head to the polls.