The petition challenging the Tel Aviv municipality’s ban on the use of mechitzos at the yearly Yom Kippur tefillah at Dizengoff Square was denied by the Tel Aviv District Court on Thursday.
No gender segregation would be permitted in public on Yom Kippur, the judge ruled in response to the Freedom and Human Dignity in Israel Forum’s petition.
“The mitzvah of tefillah will not be harmed if the petitioners do not daven in the manner requested by them—separated by gender in the public space,” the woman wrote.
The plaintiffs’ legal counsel, Tzafnat Nordman, asserted: “A court in the Jewish state forbids a mechitzah for Jewish tefillah. The Mufti and the British were the last to forbid a mechitzah in Israel’s sovereign territory.
With a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes, I finished reading the verdict. What a slight. As a Jew first, then as an Israeli citizen, and finally as a lawyer.
The decision offends every Jew who is still somewhat connected to his roots and runs afoul of the liberal system’s underlying rationale in administrative and constitutional law. Here, I’ll quit talking,” Nordman declared.
Tally Gotliv, a Likud MK, retorted, “Elokim B’Shamayim. A mechitzah on Yom Kippur tefillas Neilah harms whom? Does the court need to violate this at all? Who are you fighting for, exactly?
The ‘State of Tel Aviv’, which embraces everyone but believers in certain religions, A PLO flag, a pride parade, and a mechitzhah for prayer are all present. Chalilah.
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