Interior Minister Aryeh Deri has ordered the ministry’s director-general to become personally involved in the brewing crises between Jerusalem City Hall and Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon.

Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat over recent days and weeks has been sending his clear message via the media. He explains that Kahlon is not allocating the budget to the city and as a result, the city has begun handing out layoff notifications to over 2,000 city workers as the city can no longer afford to pay them.

Deri ordered Director-General Mordechai Cohen to immediately become personally involved and see what he can do to rectify the situation.

In response to the distribution of pink (dismissal) slips to 2,150 city employees, the city’s employees’ union has announced a strike of all city services beginning on motzei Shabbos. Garbage collection appears to have been halted in some areas already beginning on Thursday afternoon.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)