Deri to Leave Ministry of Economy

Aryeh Deri, chairman of the Shas Sephardi Hareidi party, will leave the Ministry of Economy and be given another Cabinet post following the failure of the Netanyahu government to convince him to relinquish authority over the roadmap for governing Israel's off-shore natural gas fields.

Deri will continue to serve as Minister of the Development of the Negev and the Galilee along with another post yet to be determined. Taking over the Interior Ministry from Silvan Shalom is one possibility, but that could not take place without the agreement the senior Likud member.

The stalemate over the authority for the natural gas development has kept the Knesset from voting on the budget. Once it is passed, probably in mid-November, authorization is expected for the framework for natural gas.