Shas chairman Aryeh Deri on Tuesday evening held a Zoom call with about 30 deputy mayors who participated in a conference in Eilat.
In his remarks, Deri commented on his expected resignation from the Knesset in the wake of his legal case, and said that he does not intend to resign from the leadership of the Shas movement.
"It is important to me that you hear this in my voice - I have no intention of stopping my activity as chairman of the Shas movement for even a minute. My mission is to fight for Judaism and help the weak and I will do so with you until the coming of our righteous Messiah. It does not matter if it is in one position or another," he said.
"We will do this with the blessing of Maran Rabbeinu Ovadia Yosef, who is guarding us from above, and in the light of the Council of Torah Sages headed by the President of the Council, the great Rabbi Shalom Cohen," added Deri.
On Monday, it was reported that Deri's attorneys are on the verge of signing a plea bargain with Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit.
According to the agreement, the chairman of Shas will plead guilty to relatively minor tax offenses and in return will not be sentenced to actual imprisonment or community service.
Deri will be able to remain chairman of his party, but will have to resign from the Knesset. He will also be able to run for the Knesset in the future and return to serve as an MK in the next Knesset.
Deri had been under investigation on suspicions that an association belonging to his family illegally received state funds which were under his control.
Suspicions were aroused in 2016, after reports surfaced of Deri owning multiple homes, which were left unreported to tax authorities, including a villa in Moshav Safsufa that is allegedly worth millions.
Deri, who was convicted in 1999 of bribery and fraud for crimes committed while serving as Interior Minister more than two decades ago, served 22 months in prison and was released in 2002. He returned to the Knesset in 2013 and led the Shas party in the 2015 elections.