they should fly 7 days a week! let the haridim ruin another airline. or they should stay here, england or the USA.

Separate places for women and men in buses on some lines, separate pavements, separate this and separate that. These people are not genuinely religous but are abusing religion for their own extremist agenda which is pestering relations between religious and secular Israelis. It is very simple, if you don't want to travel during shabath, then don't but stop messing in other peoples' business. Let these clowns move to the wacko naturei karta extremists in New York or back to the shtetl.

Let Rabbi Elyashiv deal with his kosher world bigotry while we the overwhelming majority of the Israeli people, both religious and secular will deal and take care of our wonderful country Israel. I can't wait until the young Israelis who crave for freedom and fullfilment in the haredi sector are liberated once and for all from the backward shtetl establishment.

Religion was invented by man, when the most talented cavemen began to respond to the growing need for an explanation to the question: Why are we here and what is the meaning? Based on human inherited limited ability to see beyond the horizon of his immediate surrounding, the cavemen initiated the locally based interpretation instead of a universal belief. A misinterpretation that the world suffers from till this day, when religious leaders express their religion superiority above others. The religious communities around the world have still not understood "do to others what you want done to yourself." This is the sad truth, profoundly expressed daily (also) by jewish fundamentalists who disregard human universal heritage.

Without the business from the orthodox sector El Al will go bankrupt, but the other airlines will be less careful about the Shabbat then El Al.

The reason why the orthodox care if you fly on shabbat is becuase of many more complex issues. THank you all SELF ORDAINED rabbis who have studies all the bible and it's laws, as well as commentaries to decide for me what to do.

Yes, I have self-will and decided to emigrate and bring up my family in Israel and follow Jewish customs & traditions. How about you? Living amongst the Danish Muslims. You are confusing yourself. What Divine Decree? Do you mean the haredi fundamentalist belief that they want to force on every citizen in Israel. !

I think the Haredi are off the wall and do many very bad things. Especially 1. the mis treatment of women and agunah 2. the isolationisn of their youth. 3. the rejection of their obligation to IDF. 4. Idolatrous worship of rabbis (sorry for hot language) However, I love EL AL and think that shabat and kosher give it a special character that is very attractive to me. On the market they must monitize this and decide if that can do it. If they do shabat and kosher then they should be sure to get maximum support. I bet they could even make a haredi section of the plane. Yeshivish crew, now that would be diversity. Diversity is an American concept, I know

I have flown a variety of airlines to Israel in the past. My experience has been that El-Al's staff and management definitely makes an orthodox traveler feel second class. I feel we are tolerated as an irritating minority that must be accomadated. On airlines such as Continental, I feel an equal with all other passengers. They are eager and sensitive to accomadate the special needs of an Orthodox Jewish traveler. On El-Al I have always sensed an underlying belligerence toward our Orthodox Jewish practices. This is not just about the Sabbath. In my opinion, people should vote with their wallets. If El-Al wants to fly on the Sabbath, they will see an economic consequence. The Orthodox Jewish traveler is not an insignificant percentage of their business.

I think you misunderstood. These people are not forcing their doctrine on you. They aree not like the mullahs of Iran. El Al has marketed itself as an airline that holds religious values such as kashrut and shabbat. Rabbi Elyashiv doesn't control El Al or make demands of El Al. El Al has advertised itself as a religious airline. Anyway, it is perfectly democraitc for them to hold a boycott. It is El Al's loss which is why this is important. You see, you want the haredim to stop controling El Al, but in reality they don't control El Al. The airline feels the financial pressure of losing a large sector of its customers. The airline itself chose to give in (and rightfully so).

god punishment is individual one to who that breake shabat ,,, it is like the old story of the fishmen who was breake shabat with a trick .. punishment was to fishmen ,,not to whom eat the fish .. in islam at friday noon al the moslemmust leave the bying and selling to pray .. but it is not obliged by the goverments or the sheihk .. even in saudi they stope these people oblige the citizens to pray .. it is religouse but .who do not obey will hurt himselfe not the other .. and god will judge evry one on his doing .. evry one alon infront god .. it is not like any human law ..it is god law .it is the absolute justice

if el al markets itself as an airline that doesn't fly on shabbat then it shouldn't do so. that is going against its marketing strategy and "trade description". if a cheap airline like ryan air comes to israel , which i hope it does, and then started charging the same prices as el al, that too would be against its marketing strategy and "trade description". we need the choice... an airline that doesn't break shabbat and has the best security in the world... (any connection ?).. and a nice cheap no frills airline like ryan air, whose security may not be so great. if people want to fly on shabbat they can fly with any of the other airlines that fly out of israel.

I always feel, once on the plane, I am already in Israel. I am trying to comprehend this thought of the religious.... 1. if El Al fly on shabbat, they will not fly El Al 2. Other airlines fly on Shabbat,BUT they are willing to fly with them??? So all it boils down to, is a princible.

It reads "It should be noted that the Orthodox sector constitutes a large percentage of the El Al’s customers, and the airline generally makes sure to maintain Kashrut and Shabbat." This may be so, but the "Orthodox" are always crying poverty and criticizing the cutting of their child allowances. So, one may ask, where does this "large percentage of the El Al’s customers" get the money to be a "large percentage of the El Al’s customers" and fly all over the world? I think you all know the answer. My answer to the Rav, is live and let live. Allow those to live their lives in the same way that you demand of them.

Been nibbling on your drugs a wee too much. It is one thing to buy elsewhere and another to refuse to sell. The difference is in the freedom of choice. Freedom is a hard concept for you lefties to grasp. LOL as if you have something worth buying.

maybe the orthodox meant in this article centres on the Diaspora orthodox, (and think you will find they dont have too much trouble with poverty) and not basically aimed at Israeli orthodox. I get very annoyed , as a secular Jew, when these orthodox get on their soapbox, that we may be a lesser Jew then them. We are all equal whatever we beleive and practice. If they dont like that remark, they can stuff it!

El Al could learn an instructive lesson from Tiv Ta'am

This is an exact explanation of what you are. "An irritating minority". A very irritating one, one that should not be tolerated so long as you continue to be irritating. I do not fly El Al only because of you, you are both irritating and unpleasant.

GET A LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sent a quote and link from a financial site over 2 hours ago. Must violate a policy here.

We citizens of this democratic counrty should have the right to determine when we fly, and if that be on the sabbath then we should be allowed to fly then. Kudos for El Al standing up to the religious people. If they chose not to fly on the sabbath then they don't have to, and if they choose not to fly EL Al let them go Isra Air and see how lousy their service is and then they will return to El Al. It is about time that the secular people of this country were given the freedom to choose if they want to fly on the sabbath or not!

Please remember, though, that the issue is not really all Orthodox, but the Haredim. I do not doubt that they can deliver many of their followers.

Don't misslead your self and others because these sages that you call clowns have said that the will use Israir and no onelse in fact they negotiating with Israir and instead of putting them down learn from them how to force EL A.L to put their prices down for example! get organize! I ALSO THINK THAT IN THE PAST WHEN EL AL WAS OBSERVING SHABAT PEOPLE LIKE YOU IN ORDER TO TRAVEL ON SHABAT DID USE LUFTANSA instead of to postpone heir trip to the very next day in order to be more patriote and to use EL AL so now you can better judge who i the clowns those sages or maybe...

ADDING TO NUMBER 14 ,EL AL FLEW ON THE SABATH ON THE FIRST GOVERNMENT OF MENACHEM BEGIN THEN TO BE PRIME MINISTER IN 1981,HE MADE A DEAL TO REMAIN IN POWER AND FROM THEN ON EL AL DOES NOT FLY ON THE SABATH

It never was a secret that EL AL reservations, aircraft maintenence and warehousing worked on Shabbat. Actual flights were more or less restricted to non-Shabbat hours. If a boycott of EL AL will be announced, I for one will not Fly EL AL, even if they slash the airfare. We must stick together and fight this through.

in the streets, more efforts by them to create "separate but equal" facilities for women, modesty codes, you'll strengthen Haredi power by joining their boycott. This will give them more influence, and you (all of Israel) will pay for it with more tax dollars, more draft-dodging, and so forth. Simple.

It is no wonder Israel is going down the drain. I swear I will no longer support Israel monetarily, with my time and effort. Except for the 'so-called' minority of Isael which is keeping the Jewish peoples covenent with G-d I find the majority of Israelis who read Ynet to not deserve to live in the Holy Land. Go find a country you can despoil and make perverted like your obsession. You people know nothing about righteousness nor what it right and wrong. In your attempt to be like the nations you have destroyed your birth right. Israel without G-d is death, as EMET without Aleph is Death. Israels time is running out, we in the Diaspora were waiting for the time of return, but there is nothing to return to. Without Shabbat the Jewish people are dead. You can violate all you want, but your spirit has ceased in this world, and your portion of the world to come was sold for a portion of beans....

Do you know how tedious it is when someone writes "shame"? It usually means nothing more than that someone disagrees with someone else. As for you, Michael, I expect the money you previously sent went to black hatters, and many here would prefer that they get a job and rely less on welfare. Let's be realistic and clear: the average Israeli doesn't need American financial support. Indeed, it might be that American support maintains groups that should have to fend more for themselves. Michael sez: "You people know nothing about righteousness nor what it right and wrong. In your attempt to be like the nations you have destroyed your birth right" Blow me, Michael. What do you know about righteousness from under your clown suit? Is it righteous to riot in Jerusalem, to stone policemen, to stab participants at a parade (last year)? Is it righteous to avoid participation in one's own military, to subsist by careful planning on welfare while having enormous numbers of children? Do you think OTHER PEOPLE want to pay for YOUR children, who will grow up as fanatical and vicious as you have proven yourself to be? Is it righteous to expel 10,000 of your fellow Jews (who are Othodox, mostly, I should add) so that the haredim can get more pork? The source of death in Israel is from two main populations: the Left and the Haredim. The central reason why these groups have such power is a defective polical system; an effective one would have removed almost all temporal power from the rabbis and from the leftist minority. Clown suits did not protect Eastern European Jews; only an ability to fight could have.