Deri seeks to overturn court decision allowing mini-marts to open on Shabbat

Interior Minister Minister Aryeh Deri files a request for an additional hearing at the High Court of Justice on allowing convenience stores in Tel Aviv to remain open on the Jewish day of rest.

The move comes after Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit turned down Deri’s request to submit a request for an additional High Court hearing on the matter on behalf of the state.

“The Shabbat and its observance is a cornerstone of the existence of the Jewish people,” Deri says of his appeal. “Given the honor of the Sabbath and its importance to halacha, it deserve additional discussion.”

In April, the High Court upheld a 2014 Tel Aviv City Council ordinance allowing the stores to remain open on Shabbat, with the court saying it would protect the cosmopolitan character of the coastal and mostly secular city.