Minister of Tourism (Likud) Yair Levin is warning chareidi parties to back down from a campaign to compel the closure of supermarkets on Shabbos. According to Levin, such action would elicit the ire of the nation’s secular community and the likely result would be placing Yair Lapid in the Prime Minister’s seat in the next Knesset elections.
According to the NRG report, the matter is part of the battle to have Shabbos enforcement authority transferred to the Interior Ministry headed by Shas leader Aryeh Deri. Levin warned the chareidi parties on Sunday, 3 Menachem Av that making radical changes in the religious quo might backfire and compel the secular majority to vote for Lapid in the next election. Actually, Levin predicts the closure of supermarkets would result in Lapid earning 30 seats in the next election.
The heads of chareidi factions in Knesset reportedly responded that the closure of supermarkets on Shabbos would also bring them 30 seats.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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6 Responses
It is our Mitzva to keep Shabbos and we should never be intimidated to allow it’s desecration!
What consequences? If stores are open on Shabbos, it already looks like Lapid is Prime Minister.
Chareidi parties should put their foot down no matter what and not worry about next election.
Israel is a Jewish state and Shabbos must be observed.
I highly doubt the chareidim are going to get 10 let alone 30
Why don’t they just add Sunday as an off-day, like in civilized countries?
I think someone should tell this minister that he’s gonna suffer the consequences if hedoesn’t back down God is a lot more powerful than he is
The Chardim can use their political power for defending the Jewish character of Israel or for keeping quiet and sucking money out of the government.
Let us hope that they defend the Torah’s laws.