Israel rejects Bar Refaeli's no-fly zone plea for wedding

Israeli supermodel Bar Rafaeli's appeal to keep the air space above her wedding venue clear has been rejected by the government after much public outcry.
Israel was abuzz last week when it was reported that Refaeli had requested the authorities to shut down the air space in northern Israel, the site of the 30-year-old model's much-anticipated wedding to Israeli businessman Adi Ezra this week.
The request was made presumably to deny photographers an aerial view of the festivities.
The decision to reject Refaeli's proposal was announced today by Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz and comes two days after Israel's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) had acceded to the plea.

"The skies belong to all Israeli citizens and we can't offer special treatment for this event over other events," Katz said adding, "We must maintain a semblance of equality in approving flights."
The company responsible for documenting the event had asked for the area to be shut down, since a zeppelin, two private planes, and five drones will be airborne during the event.

The restricted area covers about four square kilometers, and 3,000 feet and above.
The CAA notice was to get into effect at 5 PM on September 24 and would have lasted until 2 AM on September 25.

The Ministry of Transportation in its earlier response to the planned closure had said that the decision was made for safety reasons since a large number of aircraft will be occupying the area.
"These are safety guidelines that are used when unmanned aircraft are active," the ministry had said adding, "The guidelines were published in accordance with Civil Aviation Authority regulations and the procedures according to law.