After Vowing That Tel Aviv's Light Rail Will Operate On Shabbos Brought Death Threats, Israel's Transportation Minister's Security Beefed Up

Israel's Shin Bet agency will boost the security detail of Transportation Minister Merav Michaeli following a wave of threats against the official on social media and elsewhere.

The Labor party, led by Michaeli, said in a statement Monday that the minister's security detail was beefed up "in light of increased threats."

Michaeli drew ire from Israel's ultra-Orthodox sector last week by saying that Tel Aviv's light rail — currently in advanced stages of construction — will operate on Shabbat, the Jewish day of rest.

Last week lawmaker Bezalel Smotrich, a far-right traditionalist, said that “instead of dealing with the transportation catastrophe that all Israeli citizens suffer from, Merav Michaeli prefers to spread empty slogans.” 

He vowed that future right-wing governments "will make sure to cancel any decision that harms the Jewish character of the country, and we will preserve the Sabbath and its sanctity as the national day of rest.”

In Jerusalem, a city with a far higher proportion of ultra-Religious residents than Tel Aviv, the light rail is inoperative on Shabbat.