The Tel Aviv Magistrate’s Court on Thursday convicted Member of Knesset Yair Peretz of the ultra-Orthodox Shas party for fraudulently obtaining an academic degree. Peretz is to announce his resignation from the Knesset within 48 hours.
Peretz admitted submitting a paper as his final thesis to the US-based Burlington College through correspondence, which he did not write. He said he turned in other students’ papers changing their names. Other charges were brought against Peretz that he tried to obtain a diploma from Israel’s Bar Ilan University without attending classes. He was indicted a year ago.