In a most unusual event, Shas party MKs were seen on Wednesday morning on Har HaMenuchos, visiting the Kever of Rav Yaakov Cohen z”l, one of the party’s founders. They were asking for Mechila, as party leader Aryeh Deri feels they did not respect Rav Cohen as they should have during his lifetime.

According to the BeChadrei Chareidim report, the delegation headed by Deri included Rav Shlomo Dayan, who was among the party’s first MKs. After the recitation of Tehillim, the appropriate tefilos were recited by Deri along with Kaddish.

At the kever, Deri stated,

“אני רוצה גם לבקש ממנו מחילה, סליחה וכפרה שלא כיבדנו אותו מספיק בחיים, לא ידענו להעריך ולא ידענו את כל מה שהוא עשה, שיזכה לעמוד בשמיים עם כל מייסדי ש”ס זי”ע ושנזכה להחזיר עטרה ליושנה”.

Deri began to explain how he knew the niftar when he (Deri) was just a young chosson, and how his wife worked in one of Cohen’s chessed organizations. He adds that R’ Cohen was his brother-in-law. A brother of his wife is married to a brother of R’ Yaakov so they are related and this is how he came to know him as a young man as well. Deri credits R’ Cohen with being the force behind the creation of Shas, and this led to three seats on the city council and then opening branches around the country.

Deri feels that it was this koach that keeps them operating today, and he has come to the conclusion that Cohen failed to receive the respect due him during his lifetime, so he wished to bring a minyan to the kever to ask mechila.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)