Drunk (illustration)
Drunk (illustration)iStock

The Jerusalem Municipal Court has ordered the "Monster" pub located in the neighborhood of Kiryat Yovel to be immediately closed. Kiryat Yovel has a park containing a giant slide sculpted in the shape of a monster, giving the park, actually Rabinovich park, its popular name.

The court was asked to rule on the case after an indictment was filed against the pub's owner, claiming he did not have a business license. In addition, a sanitation inspector claimed the location was not appropriate for use as a pub.

After hearing both sides of the case, the judge ordered the Kiryat Yovel community manager to close the pub immediately.

Recently, the influx of haredim into previously secular Kiryat Yovel has caused many harsh disagreements between the two communities where Relgious Zionist and secular Jerusalemites lived in peace for decades, careful not to offend one another.

A non-elected community management committee appointed by the municipality has exacerbated conflict, according to the neighborhood's Religious Zionist rabbi. Haredi protests forced the cancellation of a community event which was to be held at the "Monster Park,," and in response, the secular community called to "choke the haredim" out of the neighborhood.