Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, 7 Iyar, along with Tourism Minister Yariv Levin, met to discuss the recent High Court of Justice ruling permitting supermarkets in Tel Aviv to open on Shabbos. They met with heads of chareidi Knesset factions.

Prior to meeting with PM Netanyahu, Yaakov Litzman, Aryeh Deri and Moshe Gafne met to discuss the matter in an effort to get on the same page ahead of the high-level meeting with the prime minister.

It appears the chareidi faction leaders are going to use the leverage available to them. That is to say, they will not support the new fiscal reform package sponsored by Finance Minister (Kulanu) Moshe Kahlon until there is coalition support for legislating a law that will prevent the implementation of the High Court ruling to open stores in Tel Aviv. It is noted that Kahlon has already announced his party will not become partner to any legislation which circumvents the High Court ruling.

Without actually placing an ultimatum before the Prime Minister, the chareidi lawmakers are signaling that failure to prevent implementation of the court’s ruling in Tel Aviv will indeed lead to a coalition crisis, possible early elections.

The head of the Shas Moetzas Gedolei Hatorah, HaGaon HaRav Shalom Cohen Shlita, has instructed Deri and other Shas lawmakers to wage an uncompromising battle to maintain the Shabbos status quo, to the point he is willing to instruct Shas to leave the coalition in response to failed efforts.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)