(haipo) Public outcry in Kiryat Motzkin following the opening of a new branch of the "Tiv Taam" chain in the Mishkenot Ha'Ameni neighborhood. A group of residents, led by the chairman of the "Motzkin with Tradition" movement, Doron Greenberg, filed an administrative petition against the municipality, claiming non-enforcement of the bylaw prohibiting the sale of pork and pork products. The struggle, which seems to be a struggle for Jewish identity against consumer pluralism, is provoking strong reactions from both sides of the fence.
The administrative petition: Demand for enforcement of the municipal by-law
In a petition submitted to the court, the petitioners demand that the municipality enforce the municipal bylaw of 1955, which prohibits the sale of pork and pork products within the city limits. They claim that the opening of a "Tiv Taam" branch in the north of the city, which sells non-kosher products, constitutes a blatant violation of the existing law. Greenberg, who is leading the fight, claims that this is a serious violation of the feelings of the religious and traditional public in the city, and that the law should be applied equally to all businesses.
The connection between the petition and the Ten Days of Repentance
Greenberg notes that the submission of the petition during the Ten Days of Repentance is no coincidence. According to him, this is a symbolic step of correction for the city's residents: "This is a return to repentance and correction for over 56,000 residents of the city of Kiryat Motzkin," he says. According to him, the petition is being submitted on behalf of the "silent majority" – a broad public of religious, traditional and even secular people who oppose the sale of pork, which he says is "the antithesis of Judaism."
Greenberg's political involvement and disappointment with the mayor
Greenberg, who previously ran for city council and helped elect Mayor Tsiki Avissar, expresses deep disappointment with Avissar's conduct. "I never imagined that Tsiki would harm the status quo in the city and the city's Jewish identity," he says. According to him, the opening of the new branch and the lack of response from the municipality constitute a violation of the unwritten agreements that have prevailed in the city for years.
Attorney and CPA Moshe Peretz, chairman of the Meuhedim faction in the city, is assisting Greenberg in his fight. Peretz, who defines himself as a traditionalist but not religious, emphasizes the importance of equal enforcement of the law: "If there is a municipal regulation, it must be enforced. There cannot be selective enforcement." According to him, there are five businesses in the city that sell pork and the fight is aimed at stopping the sale in each of them.
Public petition and social media reactions
The petition was filed by attorney Sharon Thatcha Tamari, who confirmed its submission and stated that it will be handled in court later. According to her, the petition speaks for itself, and reflects the position of a broad public in the city. Thatcha Tamari is expected to lead the legal process and represent the petitioners in the upcoming hearings.
Alongside the petition, a public petition was distributed, signed by about 800 residents. Peretz notes that this is a significant number, indicating broad public support. "We receive many comments on Facebook that support the sale of only kosher food," he says. According to him, the struggle is not only religious but also moral, since the sale of pork is seen by many as an anti-Jewish symbol.
The claims in the petition: Harm to the feelings of the religious and traditional public
The petition claims that the opening of the "Tiv Taam" branch has caused serious harm to the feelings of the religious and traditional public in the city. The branch, which opened in June 2025, is located in the heart of the city and advertises its activities on Shabbats and holidays. The petitioners claim that the numerous advertisements, along with the sale of pork, "increased the level of discontent" and led to a feeling of alienation among many residents. Their requests to the municipality, they say, were not responded to with empathy.
Greenberg is also appealing to residents to support the fight financially. The cost of filing the petition is 2,273 NIS, plus attorneys' fees. He says this is a principled fight that requires resources, and he calls on everyone who cares about the issue to help.
Voices from the field: Residents support the Tiv Taam branch and the mayor
On the other hand, there are residents in the city who express support for the new branch. Dr. Orly Mizrahi, a resident of the Artists' neighborhood, claims that for years pork has been sold in the city without opposition. According to her, the current opposition stems from political rather than substantive motives: "There are people who are having a hard time with the loss of the previous mayor, Haim Zuri, so suddenly everything bothers them."
Mizrahi notes that the new branch is also open on Shabbat and holidays, and that there is a lively movement of shoppers at all hours of the day. "There are enough residents who are very happy with a non-kosher supermarket," she says. According to her, everyone is entitled to choose their lifestyle, and kosher should be observed at home and not imposed on the entire public.
The municipality's response: The status quo has been maintained over the years
In early August, a response was received from the municipality's legal advisor, Attorney Gili Segal-Bio, who rejects the petitioners' claims. According to her, the status quo in the city is a coexistence of a secular public alongside a traditional religious public, and there is no violation of existing agreements. Segal-Bio emphasizes that over the years, businesses have operated in the city that sold non-kosher food, and the current situation is not unusual.
Segal Bio notes that the petition was signed by only about 2% of the city's residents, and that this is no reason to violate the rights of the remaining 98% of the residents. According to her, some of the signatories are not residents of Kiryat Motzkin at all. She emphasizes that the municipality is committed to serving all residents, of all streams and backgrounds, while refraining from imposing restrictions that are not legally justified.
The Municipal By-Law: Is it an archaic law?
The legal advisor, Segal Bio, also refers to the municipal bylaw from 1955, and claims that it is an archaic law that does not correspond to today's reality. According to her, enforcing the law today could constitute an unjustified restriction, and therefore the municipality refrains from implementing it. She emphasizes that the municipality acts out of a commitment to protecting the rights of all residents.
The Struggle for the City's Identity: Judaism Versus Pluralism
The struggle in Kiryat Motzkin goes beyond the debate over the sale of pork, and raises deeper questions about the city's identity, the relationship between religion and state, and the limits of tolerance. Should a municipality enforce an old bylaw that is out of touch with reality? Do traditional public sentiments justify restrictions on free consumerism? And what is the real status quo in a city where secular and religious people live together?
The upcoming legal hearing may decide not only the fate of the petition, but also the delicate balance between Jewish identity and the freedom of choice of the residents of Kiryat Motzkin.
Since the "story of the 'full cart versus the empty cart'" that Bogurion "ate" from the mouth of the Chazon Ish at the beginning of the state and authorized 400 "scholars" to become unemployed and earn a living at the expense of the public, the secular majority has suffered from religious coercion in matters of marriage, food, entertainment, and public transportation, with the kind help of secular collaborators from various ruling parties (even if things have improved in some areas thanks to our struggle). Since I immigrated to Israel in 1957, I, and with me millions of people without cars throughout the country, have been placed under "house arrest" every Shabbat and holiday eve, because Israel is the only country in the world that lacks public transportation seven days a week. So what about the "hurt feelings" here — I ask the Orthodox and traditional whiners. Besides, the God-Moloch you worship provided us with a small "holocaust" two years ago, from which most of us (except for the Bibiists and their mostly Orthodox partners) have yet to recover — and that is reason enough to roll you and your petition down all the stairs. Get off our plate — before we feed you mini-trifles!
Everyone will mind their own business and we'll get out of this together.
People are missing a very important and fundamental point!
It has nothing to do with religious or secular people.
On the Sabbath, people sacrificed their lives to eat kosher.
Didn't we realize that we are trying to be like the Gentiles and yet in public we are stealing???? At home, everyone can do what they want, but inside the city it is important that there are no such stores and certainly not open on Shabbat.
Where have we come to? Didn't we learn from October 7th that we tried to be kind????
It really hurts to read some of the comments here. Just bury your head in the sand
For anyone who shouts religious coercion and generally refers to this story, you should know that the religious in Motzkin are indeed hurt by every store that opens on Shabbat, but they are more hurt by Doron's behavior throughout the years. Observing Shabbat is not as important to him as scoring political points, but so what? In every election, he will always be in second place on the list that receives the fewest votes, so there is no chance that he will represent any public in Motzkin. That's it, get rid of this story. Unfortunately, non-kosher stores exist in Motzkin, and I hope that they will be closed and that they will always sell kosher, but I have no intention of burning down any such store, but simply to strengthen stores that respect the public that observes kashrut. Doron did not receive the department of Torah culture that Tsiki promised him before the elections, and therefore he is attacking him. That's the whole story, and may we all have a good year, even for those who are not religious.
The amazing thing is that even the carnivores are proud of their Judaism and their country and see it clearly abroad. And they see it with greater force since the beginning of the war, even among those who do not eat kosher. In order to close non-kosher stores or stores on Shabbat, you need to speak up and certainly not hold demonstrations of 20 people in which you slander the mayor, his deputy and other city officials. The great rule of Judaism is to love your neighbor as yourself. Your neighbor is also someone who does not think or behave like you, and this is the big mistake in Doron's behavior in this story and in the rest of the events. End of a good signature
And the smell of urine was soooooo
The left screams that it is defending the rule of law in the country.
But if there are laws they don't like, then they have the right to criticize them.
Not only bringers of political disasters but also hypocritical fascists.
The left screams that it is defending the rule of law in the country.
But if there are hackers they don't like, then they have the right to tweet about them.
Not only bringers of political disasters but also hypocritical fascists.
It's a fight for fair competition. One opens the business 7 days a week under the pretext of selling pork, and the other is forced to close the business one day a week...
Some people are either bored or trying to impose on most secular people how to live, everyone should do as they please in their own homes.
If you don't want it, don't buy it there. But looking at another person's plate is coercion!
Not religious and against the sale of pork in the city. Where else will we go?
Enough watching! Keeping kosher at home! The secular majority wants a supermarket on Shabbat.
And then they are surprised that there is anti-Semitism, parasites without life and brains
It is more characteristic of the ultra-Orthodox than of the religious and traditional to treat a branch of a new taste in their city or neighborhood in this way. The national religious and traditional public is not like this, unlike the ultra-Orthodox public.
It is impossible to live with the constant attempt to force residents to live by the conventions of the city's minority.
This commercial center does not interfere in the slightest with the fabric of life.
Anyone who is bothered by a store that is open on Shabbat should not go there!
Greenberg, you're fed up! It's not for nothing that after all the chaos you're barely on the council.
Enough with the unbearable religious people.
When will you enslave us, who are the majority in the country?
For 77 years we have surrendered to all your nonsense.
You only brought trouble on us.
We must not give in to the ultra-Orthodox and religious anti-Zionists.
This store doesn't bother anyone.
And even if it bothers you, you need to know how to compromise.
As we compromise
It hurts my feelings to try to force me to eat kosher.
Well done to the mayor. We are a country where a wide variety of people live and everyone lives with respect for each other.
Kosher branches alongside those that aren't. And that's great. Everyone will look at their own plate.
1. There are dozens of stores in the city that sell non-kosher products, including pork. It's always been that way!
2. Hurting the feelings of the Haredi public is especially interesting when I was in the reserve for over 200 days while they were shouting "We will die and not be drafted!"
3. Mr. Doron, pork steak is not right for you. Go buy a deal at Shufersal, but don't put it on our plate!!!
Greenbar I don't eat pork and there are thousands who do. What's the difference between the Gulf Coast and Motzkin? I know a lot of people who work with you and use the store. Enough with the politics in the shekel. You'll find other things. Happy New Year.
If there are buyers, then there is demand. If there is demand, the buyer is the one who decides what to buy, and therefore...
Oh oh oh. When religious people live abroad or travel abroad, they don't mind that non-kosher food is sold in the hotel or in the area where they are traveling. Those who observe their religion should observe it in their own home. No one is obligated to buy or eat non-kosher food.
Only Adi Sternberg will solve everything.
Adi Sternberg for Mayor of Kiryat Motzkin!
Hahaha
I understand that next time he will be running in Modi'in Illit or Umm al-Rashrash... He hasn't run there yet.
Why have other places in Motzkin been open on Shabbat for years and sell non-kosher products?
(But delicious)
Why this cheap politics? In Kaddish Luz, there is a store that has been open on Shabbat for years and no one has complained.
Doron Greenberg is a poor provocateur who wanted to enter the city council and failed.
Doron didn't even get a mandate in the last elections. By the way, a mandate = 1200 votes.
That is…. ?!?
There is no problem with taste.
Whoever disturbs him will not be allowed to enter!
Neither on Saturday nor on a weekday.
I'm vegan and it doesn't bother me.
A person who is religious should be religious in his own home. He cannot impose his opinion on others. It is a basic right of a person to eat what he wants.
We are not in Bnei Brak.
Leave us alone with the nonsense of personal politics.
We don't mind at all that all residents decide for themselves to buy steak on Shabbat.
Or Sunday.
Enough to manage our lives.