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High Court rules Prime Minister cannot bar Sabbath railway work
Israel’s High Court ruled yesterday that the Prime Minister does not have jurisdiction to halt railway maintenance work on the Jewish Sabbath.
Responding to a petition by Meretz head Zahava Galon, the court ordered Israel Railways “not to heed any provision regarding infrastructure and maintenance work given to it by the Prime Minister, until a final decision is made on the petition”. The ruling said that Israel Railways is permitted to employ workers on the Jewish Sabbath through to the end of September and that any other decisions on the matter are the purview of Labour Minister Haim Katz.
Speaking during a visit to Holland, Netanyahu said that he respects the court’s decisions and that “they clarify the order of things”. He added that Katz “will decide, according to the law, which works are fundamental and these will be carried out”.
The issue of railway maintenance work on the Jewish Sabbath has been the cause of significant political tension over the past two weeks. The leaders of ultra-Orthodox parties within the coalition, Interior Minister Aryeh Deri who heads Shas, plus Health Minister Yaakov Litzman and Finance Committee Chairman MK Moshe Gafni, both of United Torah Judaism (UTJ), have raised deep concerns with Netanyahu over the issue. They regard such work as a desecration of the Sabbath and have indicated that it could imperil their place in the coalition.
Last weekend, Netanyahu ordered the end to scheduled railway work shortly before the Sabbath began, leaving work unfinished. This caused huge disruption for tens of thousands of commuters, plus many soldiers returning to base following weekend leave.
Some accused Netanyahu of bowing to ultra-Orthodox pressure. However, Netanyahu blamed Transport Minister Yisrael Katz for causing an “unnecessary crisis”. Relations between the two began to sour several weeks ago when Yisrael Katz led an attempt to reduce Netanyahu’s power within the Likud Party.
It remains unclear whether Haim Katz will permit scheduled maintenance work to take place during this coming Sabbath