An 82-year-old Holocaust survivor successfully sued Israel’s national airline after it forced her to move seats because an ultra-Orthodox man did not want to sit next to a woman.
Renee Rabinowitz successfully sued El Al after the airline forced her to move seats before a flight because an ultra-Orthodox man refused to sit next to her. The landmark case was brought by Rabinowitz on the basis of discrimination.
The Jerusalem Magistrates Court’s ruling means that it is now illegal for an airline to ask a passenger to change seats due to their gender.
The incident occurred in 2015, however this problem is not uncommon on flights to and from Israel. Earlier this year on an easyJet flight, 10 ultra-orthodox passengers stood in the aisles and refused to take their seats for the same reason. It was only until female passengers agreed to move that the flight could depart.
A Delta flight in New York was also delayed after male ultra-orthodox passengers refused to sit next to women.
Some Jewish men believe physical contact with a woman would be immodest and in breach of their strict religious practices.
In an interview with the Guardian last year, Rabinowitz said: “The man had no other reason to complain than my gender – and that’s unlawful discrimination. It’s no different than if a person of another religion had said: I don’t want to sit next to a Jew.”
The airline did not say whether it would appeal the decision.
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