Tel Aviv – The introduction of religious law would turn Israel into an equivalent of Iran, Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huladi told Yedioth Ahronoth in a special interview published Friday.

“A state based on Jewish law is a religious state; it’s Iran,” he said.

Huldai, a devout secular who made headlines last year when he vowed to introduce public transportation in Tel Aviv on Shabbat, said he is concerned about the implications of Israel’s growing religiosity.

“If we’ll have an ultra-Orthodox majority here, Israel will turn into a fundamentalist state like Saudi Arabia.”

“We’re producing a reality that is breaking us up from within,” he said. “The notion of independence is not to be taken for granted, especially for the Jewish people, and we should keep in mind that the Temple was ruined because of a civil war.”

“Eventually there will be public transportation on Shabbat,” he said. “It will happen during my term in office.”