להתחזק. הרב אריה שטרן
להתחזק. הרב אריה שטרןצילום: חזקי עזרא

The Jerusalem Religious Council Chairman demanded that city Chief Rabbi Aryeh Stern cease using the letterhead he received from the religious council for use in his capacity as city Rabbi.

"I recently received a letter that came out during December on Rabbi Stern's letterhead," Yishai wrote to Sigalit Buzaglo, a council worker.

"As is known, the Rabbi's tenure expired at the end of November. So as not to impinge upon the Rabbi's honor we did not prevent him from entering the bureau, but he is not allowed to use the Council's official stationery and is not allowed to use council staff," Yishai added.

He ended his communiqué with an implicit threat and wrote, "Unfortunately, I also got a call from the media about the subject."

Extending Rabbis Stern's tenure was contested in the transitional election period, and paperwork intended to arrange the matter are sitting on the Minister's desk unsigned.

Jerusalem Religious Council Chairman Yehoshua Yishai was previously questioned on suspicion of corruption in the Religious Council under his management, but the case was closed for lack of evidence.

The 2017 State Comptroller's report criticized the functioning of the Jerusalem kashrut system under his supervision, but attempts to terminate his tenure have heretofore been unsuccessful.