Political row causes traffic chaos in Israel's two major cities

Political infighting between Israeli leaders suspended train lines that link Israel's two largest cities on Sunday, creating mile-long traffic gridlock and public protest.

Numerous commuters and returning soldiers found themselves stuck in massive traffic jams between Tel Aviv, Israel's financial capital, and the northern city of Haifa.

Long queues were seen at central bus stations, in what local media dubbed as "transportation chaos."

The train was shut down on Saturday after Netanyahu ordered to suspend repair works until Sunday, in order to observe the Jewish religious law, which forbids working on Shabbat.

His decision came in the wake of pressures from his ultra- Orthodox partners in his narrow governing coalition, who were angered by the "defilement" of the Jewish holy day.

Netanyahu blamed Transportation Minister Israel Katz for sparking the conflict with the ultra-Orthodox parties by allowing "non-essential works" on Saturday.

"This crisis is completely unnecessary. There was no need to reach this situation," he told the ministers at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting.

He said that the State of Israel has been honoring a status quo with the ultra-Orthodox for many years. "When work needs to be done on Shabbat -- it is done. When it does not need to be done on Shabbat -- it is not done," he said.

On Saturday, Netanyahu also accused Katz of deliberately trying to shake his coalition by undermining his relations with the religious parties.

Katz's office was not immediately available to comment on the dispute.

The cancellation of the train lines wreaked havoc on Sunday, with television broadcasting live from bus stations and jammed roads. Israel's Jerusalem Post reported that about 150 trains were cancelled, affecting around 150,000 people including work commuters, students, and soldiers.

A spokesperson for Israel Railways, a state-owned company that operates the trains, said that the lines would be resumed on Sunday evening.

On Saturday night, the decision to halt the infrastructure works and the expected traffic jams sent hundreds of Israelis and several lawmakers to the streets of Tel Aviv and Haifa. They lifted banners calling, "Let's get the country back on track" and "Netanyahu this is our train too."

The rallies were organized by called "Free Israel," a movement which advocates against the ultra-Orthodox hegemony in Israel. Endit