Shas Candidate's Charity for Bereaved Families Diverted Millions to Yeshiva Stipends, Probe Finds

A nonprofit founded by Shas Knesset candidate Dror Amos raised NIS 4.8 million in 2024 to help families bereaved by the October 7 attacks, but an investigation by Channel 12 found more than NIS 2.5 million of it went instead toward yeshiva student stipends, The Times of Israel reported.

The organization, called Kindness, Life and Truth, was largely unknown to the families it was supposed to serve. Channel 12's investigation cited numerous bereaved families who said they had never heard of it. Reporters also found instances of apparent double-funding from multiple public bodies, and said relatives of Shas officials had obtained positions and contracts connected to the nonprofit, which shared office space and staff with private companies tied to the Amos family.

Amos stepped away from the nonprofit after becoming head of the Haifa Religious Council in May 2025, a move presented at the time as addressing a potential conflict of interest; his brother took over running it. Shas dismissed the Channel 12 report as a "false investigation," while the Religious Services Ministry said the arrangement around Amos's conflict of interest "was duly approved in accordance with the law."

The watchdog group ITIM said it would ask the Attorney General to open a criminal investigation and has separately petitioned the Central Elections Committee to disqualify Amos from running, arguing he illegally held onto his public religious-council role after joining Shas's Knesset slate.