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We Have Never Been So Close to Civil Marriage

We Have Never Been So Close to Civil Marriage

At the beginning of March 2023, the Supreme Court accepted Hiddush’s arguments and dismissed the State's appeal against the ruling of the Jerusalem Administrative Court on the issue of "Utah marriages". The Jerusalem Administrative court ruled in favor of the petition filed by Hiddush and ordered that the Population Authority and the Ministry of the Interior are obligated to register as married any couple who marry through the “Utah online marriage". The ruling of the Supreme Court concludes the legal part of Hiddush’s two-year battle against the Minister of the Interior and the Population Authority and enables thousands of couples to marry in a civil marriage without having to leave Israel. Unfortunately (and shamefully) civil marriage and divorce in Israel are still a distant reality, but the ruling of the Supreme Court constitutes a breakthrough in the struggle for freedom of marriage. You can read more about the ruling of the Supreme Court here.


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