Relations between chareidi city councilmen and Haifa Mayor Yona Yahav are nearing a crisis as the former accuse the latter of failing to live up to a coalition agreement pertaining to a rotation on the council.

A meeting on the matter was held on Sunday evening 28 Iyar hosted by Yaakov Litzman with two Yahadut Hatorah Haifa councilmen, it was decided that a meeting would take place on Monday morning that would be attended by Litzman, Moshe Gafne and Aryeh Deri. The meeting is described as a last effort to mend fences with the city’s mayor, Yona Yahav and Miki Halper, the Degel Hatorah councilman who was supposed to become a deputy mayor but the mayor refuses to honor the agreement. The Agudas Yisrael councilman, Aryeh Blitenthal stepped down to permit Halper to take the post in line with the rotation agreement but the mayor has a different plan.

Blitenthal stepped down about 10 days ago but Mayor Yahav has since announced he does not plan to appoint Alper in his place.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)