Haredi lawmakers threaten to jump coalition over Shabbat violations

The ultra-Orthodox Shas and United Torah Judaism parties threaten to leave the coalition over construction work on train lines on Shabbat, new “pirate” public transportation lines and industrial activity on the Jewish day of rest.

“The prime minister must intervene,” says Health Minister Yaakov Litzman at a rare joint UTJ-Shas faction meeting.

If the situation stays as is, it will be a violation of coalition agreements “and we aren’t sure we will continue to sit [in the government],” says Litzman.

Fellow party lawmaker Moshe Gafni urges Netanyahu to convene a meeting between ministers and the Haredi parties to discuss ending railway construction work on Shabbat.

“If the situation does not go back to the way it was, we will go to the [parties’ respective] Torah sages and they will tell us what to do,” he says.

Noting that a final decision on opening supermarkets in Tel Aviv on Shabbat is pending a High Court of Justice petition, Gafni says that if the court rules in favor of the stores, the ultra-Orthodox parties will push a bill that same day to bypass the court ruling.

United Torah Judaism MK Yisrael Eichler threatens to violate coalition discipline and vote against the government. “Either there is mutual respect, or there will be mutual disrespect,” he says.

— Marissa Newman