Churches in Geneva are allowed to hold services again following the intervention of the Swiss courts. 

A blanket ban was imposed on religious services and events in the city on 1 November to limit the spread of coronavirus despite other secular gatherings like public demonstrations and professional choir practices being allowed to continue. 

The constitutional court in Geneva lifted the ban after it was challenged by locals on religious freedom grounds. 

The court said the authorities had failed to demonstrate that worship services were a contributing factor in any Covid-19 outbreak. 

Lawyer Steve Alder, who is leading the legal action, said: "Switzerland has a good track record in protecting the religious freedom of its citizens. It is a poster child of democracy and human rights.

"That makes it all the more worrying to see a total ban on all religious gatherings and events in such a drastic form.

"It is one of the broadest bans of its kind in Switzerland and most of Europe where similar bans have been successfully challenged."

The court has yet to rule on whether the ban violated religious freedom, but the Alliance Defending Freedom International (ADF), which is supporting the legal challenge, welcomed the suspension. 

It said the court's intervention "indicates that the ban is not proportionate and means that religious services and gatherings are now permitted until a final judgment is handed down".

"The Chamber indicated that the likelihood of the case ultimately succeeding is high or very high," ADF added.

ADF legal counsel Jennifer Lea said: "Religious freedom is a fundamental human right and governments seeking to restrict it carry the burden of proving the restriction is truly necessary and that a less restrictive approach would not work.

"Favouring commercial establishments over religious services is not only discriminatory but ignores the robust protection that exists in national and international law for religious freedom."