A group of strictly Orthodox Jews were escorted off a flight as it landed in London over claims they refused to sit next to female passengers, it has been reported.
The men are said to have been removed from the easyJet flight at Luton airport after boarding in Tel Aviv, on Monday, around 2.55pm.
The passengers, according to the Jewish Chronicle, refused to take their seats next to women, claiming they could not do so for religious reasons.
However, the Chronicle said, following a 15-minute delay, the packed flight was able to take off after some female passengers moved seats.
In a statement on the incident easyJet did not get into the specifics around what caused the “disturbance”, but confirmed a disruption had taken place during the flight.
“EasyJet can confirm that flight EZY2084 from Tel Aviv to Luton was met by police on arrival due to a small group of passengers behaving disruptively by not complying with the captain and cabin crew’s request to take their seats both prior to departure from Tel Aviv and during the flight.
“For the safety of all passengers easyJet’s crew must ensure that whenever the seat belt signs are illuminated all passengers are in their seats with their seatbelts fastened.
“Easyjet’s cabin crew are trained to assess and evaluate all situations and to act quickly and appropriately to ensure that the safety of the flight and other passengers is not compromised at any time.”
Bedfordshire Police confirmed they were called to the airport to escort the men off the plane, but added that no offences had been committed.