Shas leader links US-Iran deal to divine retribution for draft evader arrests, slams attorney general as ‘wicked woman’

Former Sephardi Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef, the spiritual leader of Israel’s ultra-Orthodox party Shas, declared during a Saturday evening speech in Rishon Lezion that the emerging US-Iran deal is divine retribution for Israel’s crackdown on haredi draft evaders. He also called Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara a “wicked woman,” accusing her of ordering the enforcement push and, in his telling, provoking a geopolitical chain reaction that turned US President Donald Trump against Israel.

The speech and the deal

Yosef’s central claim is theological in nature: that God is punishing Israel for its treatment of yeshiva students who avoid military service. The mechanism of that punishment, in his framing, is the 14-point memorandum of understanding taking shape between Washington and Tehran, which covers ceasefire provisions, sanctions relief, and nuclear curbs.

The deal has drawn bipartisan criticism inside Israel. Coalition and opposition lawmakers alike have pushed back against the emerging framework. A poll found that 71% of Israelis distrust Trump when it comes to the US-Iran negotiations.

Yosef has a long history of opposing haredi conscription. He has previously warned that enforcing draft requirements against ultra-Orthodox men could lead to mass emigration from Israel.

Yosef claimed that Baharav-Miara’s draft enforcement actions constituted the provocation that led Trump to “turn against” Israel.

The attorney general’s office has been pushing stricter measures against haredi draft evaders, a politically explosive issue in a country where military service is compulsory for most citizens but has long been exempted for ultra-Orthodox students.

Iranian crypto sanctions and market fallout

Earlier in June, the US Treasury imposed sanctions on three Iranian entities, including Nobitex, a major digital asset exchange that was handling approximately 50% of Iran’s digital asset transaction volume in 2025.

The combination of the sanctions and the deal itself has injected volatility into crypto markets. Bitcoin and Ethereum both experienced price declines as the geopolitical picture evolved.

Prediction markets also reflected the uncertainty. Polymarket saw active trading around the outcomes of the US-Iran negotiations, with participants trying to price in the probability of various deal scenarios.

Why crypto investors should pay attention

The Nobitex sanctions underscore something that’s been increasingly clear throughout 2025 and into 2026: crypto exchanges in sanctioned jurisdictions are now primary targets for US enforcement. The Treasury isn’t just going after wallets or individuals anymore. It’s targeting the infrastructure layer, the platforms where volume actually lives.

The 71% distrust figure is worth sitting with. When nearly three-quarters of a country’s population doesn’t trust the foreign leader negotiating a deal that directly affects their security, the political pressure to reject or undermine that deal becomes enormous.

Traders watching this space should keep an eye on two things: further Treasury designations of Iranian crypto infrastructure, which could trigger additional liquidity shocks, and any movement on the 14-point memorandum that changes the sanctions relief calculus. If sanctions are actually eased as part of a final deal, previously frozen Iranian crypto volume could re-enter global markets through alternative channels.

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