Bnei Brak Municipality says it is behind blocking of neighborhood to traffic during Shabbat

The Bnei Brak Municipality has claimed responsibility for blocking a neighborhood to traffic during Shabbat. The municipality allegedly instructed a driver to place large metal dumpsters on the access road near the Sufrim Complex, according to the driver, before the start of Shabbat. This was reportedly done in protest against secular residents driving through the neighborhood on Shabbat.

The neighborhood in question was established as part of a government-subsidized housing program and is home to both haredi and secular residents. According to The Times of Israel, the municipality claims that most locals are interested in the closure and accused secular opponents of seeking provocations.

Police were called to the scene by secular residents who claimed they were trapped inside the neighborhood. Officers removed the containers and reopened the road to traffic. The drivers who placed the dumpsters were summoned for questioning on suspicion of endangering a traffic route, with the police regarding the incident as a serious matter.

Brief written by urgent.news from The Times of Israel, Jerusalem Post — 2 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.