An image from the wedding in Buenos Aires shut down by police for breaking coronavirus regulations. Photo: Screenshot.

Eight guests who attended an Orthodox Jewish wedding in the Argentine capital of Buenos Aires on Monday were arrested for violating coronavirus-related social-distancing regulations.

The six men and two women — who reportedly included the bride and groom —  were detained by police who answered an emergency call complaining that the wedding was taking place in apparent contravention of public health guidelines. Other guests were prevented from entering the building where the ceremony took place.

The arrests followed a similar controversy last week, when images of 150 guests at another Orthodox Jewish wedding were widely shared on the internet. The guests were gathered in a relatively small space without wearing masks and without observing the six-feet distancing protocol. Videos of the event showed guests kissing and hugging each other.

Local rabbis responded to the arrests by imploring the community to respect social distancing.

Eliahu Hamra — president of the congregational Vaad Hakehilot — said in a statement that “the Orthodox Jewish community in Argentina repudiates this action carried out by individuals in private locations that have not complied with the social, preventive and obligatory isolation.”

Rabbi Yosef Feigelstock of the Chabad movement in Argentina expressed concern at having “received information that there are members of our community who participated in a marriage with many guests without keeping their social distance and without masks or masks of protection.”

Feigelstock underlined that “participating in these weddings or meetings is prohibited, and if a person has already been in one of those activities, they must be isolated from our community for at least 35 days and must quarantine at home.”