I do not accept the argument of defendants 2-3, since, as stated, I am of the opinion that the events that took place during that period of the outbreak of the Corona pandemic teach otherwise. Thus, in the said order to which defendants 2-3 referred, all that was determined was that the coronavirus is a disease of international importance that requires immediate notice; and in the Public Health (Novel Coronavirus) (Home Isolation) Order (Temporary Order), 5780-2020 (hereinafter: the "Corona Order"), in its original version of February 2, 2020 (K.T. 8339, 5778, p. 516), all that was established was a quarantine obligation for those who arrived in Israel from China or for those who were in close contact with a confirmed COVID-19 patient. On the contrary, from the Ministry of Health's updates to which defendants 2-3 themselves referred (which included the expansion of the quarantine obligation for those who came to Israel from four other countries from the Far East), it appears that as of that date, no case of a confirmed patient had been discovered in Israel, and that this first occurred only on February 27, 2020.[3]
On March 5, 2020, the Corona Order was amended (Amendment No. 6, K.T. 8368, 5780, p. 692), which, inter alia, prohibited gatherings of 5,000 people or more and established a quarantine obligation for those who came from a number of European countries; On March 10, 2020, the Corona Order was amended again (Amendment No. 8, K.T. 8374, 5770, p. 724), in the framework of which, among other things, the prohibition on gatherings of 2,000 people or more was tightened. However, it was only on March 11, 2020, that the World Health Organization declared the spread of COVID-19 a pandemic, and only on March 12, 2020, was the prohibition on gatherings of 100 or more people tightened (see: Amendment No. 9 to the Order, K.T. 8379, 5780, p. 734).
On the contrary, only on March 15, 2020, i.e., after the lawsuit was filed with the Magistrate's Court, was Amendment No. 10 to the Corona Order amended (K.T. 8387, 5780, p. 762) in which the activity of entertainment and leisure businesses and event halls was restricted for the first time, and only on March 31, 2020, was participation in weddings prohibited, and on April 2, 2020, the gathering of more than two people who do not live together was prohibited (High Court of Justice 3432/20 Halls and Events Halls - World Cup Halls v. Government of Israel, Paragraph 3 (June 7, 2020; hereinafter: "Lounge Matter")).