Israel’s attorney general Gali Baharav-Miara informed the prime minister that Aryeh Deri must be fired immediately, following a Supreme Court ruling on his eligibility to be a minister.

Baharav-Miara sent the letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Thursday, following the court’s bombshell decision on Wednesday. Shas leader, Deri, is a key member of the new ruling coalition and holds the portfolios for the ministries of interior and health. He was ruled unsuitable to hold office due to recent criminal offences relating to tax.

Israel’s Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara sent a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin #Netanyahu telling him that he must fire Shas MK Aryeh #Deri “immediately” following Wednesday’s High Court of Justice ruling. pic.twitter.com/1Hqw4sICfH

— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) January 19, 2023

“According to the ruling handed down today… Knesset member Deri can no longer serve as a minister in the government of Israel,” Baharav-Miara wrote. “Consequently… you are required to act according to the ruling and remove him from his post in the government,” she continued.

“Under the limitations of the law as applied to you, you must appoint someone else to fulfil the post of Health Minister and Interior Minister,” the letter to Netanyahu concluded.

The court’s ruling is the biggest challenge to the fledgling far-right government, and comes just weeks after Netanyahu’s surge back into power. Shas politicians – along with their allies in the government – have blasted the court’s ruling, accusing the judges of overturning the votes of 400,000 Israeli citizens.