Convenience Store Owners' Union Chairman Kobi Bramer slammed Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman (Yisrael Beytenu) for opposing the "Supermarkets Law."
The Supermarket Law aims to force convenience stores to close on Shabbat (Sabbath). On Wednesday, Yisrael Beytenu announced it would not vote with the coalition in support of the law.
"I support Defense Minister Liberman," Bramer said. "After he threatened to kill Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh within 48 hours, he followed through by killing the owners of convenience stores and other small business owners."
"The Defense Minister is trying to garner a few additional votes by harming us. This is petty politics, and it turns the issue at hand into one of religious coercion.
"The owners of convenience stores and other small merchants in Israel who want to rest on Shabbat have now decided that the Yisrael Beytenu party, that facilitates their disenfranchisement, is no longer a viable voting option.
"Anyone who tries to strategically eliminate us should not turn to us for help when he needs it."