Nazareth court overturns ban on separate-sex seating at Afula concert

The Nazareth District Court overturns a controversial decision by a lower court barring the holding of a concert in the northern city of Afula that had separate-gender seating.

The concert was the only one of over 300 events put on by the city over the summer to have segregated seating as it was aimed at the local ultra-Orthodox population.

The initial ruling earlier this week came after a women’s rights group sued the city over the separation of genders, noting that Israeli law prohibits discrimination in public services based on sex.

But proponents of the concert, including the Afula municipality, have pointed to past court decisions that affirmed that religious sensitivities of minority populations can be taken into account in services provided to those populations.

The appeal was brought to the district court by the ultra-Orthodox Shas party.