Religion and politics collide, grounding Israeli train line
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Israeli commuters began their work week with massive traffic jams and a cancellation of train service along one of the country's busiest routes following a political scuffle that could shake the governing coalition.
The crisis erupted over the weekend after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, under pressure from ultra-Orthodox partners, ordered routine railway repairs scheduled on Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath, to be halted.
Orthodox Jewish law forbids work on the Sabbath, and a religious party in the coalition had threatened to quit the government unless he halted the repairs.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Netanyahu's transport minister, Yisrael Katz, canceled key train routes on Sunday because of the delayed repairs. The government dispatched extra buses for some 90,000 affected commuters.
Netanyahu accused Katz, a senior figure in the ruling Likud Party, of orchestrating the crisis.