The Orthodox Sephardi Shas party is set to propose a law that could make it illegal to hold mixed-gender prayer services at the Western Wall plaza.

The bill, which could face a ministerial vote in the Knesset as early as Sunday, would impose either a six month prison sentence or a $2,600 fine on any woman who reads from the Torah or dons a tallit or phylacteries in the vicinity of the Western Wall in Jerusalem.

In a statement, reported in the Israeli media, a Shas spokesman said that the proposed legislation was designed to prevent “religious ceremonies” which “do not fit the custom of the place, which would offend the congregation that prays there”.

The party, which is led by Aryeh Deri MK, who is Israel's Interior Minister, has requested that the bill faces a vote at the Ministerial Committee for Legislation this weekend.

If successful, it would effectively tear up the 2015 compromise worked out by Mr Netanyahu and Education Minister Naftali Bennett which established a mixed-gender prayer area alongside the existing Orthodox site.

Shas, which is part of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s governing coalition, has said it expects the bill to be supported by other coalition members.

Speaking to the Walla news site, a Shas representative said: “We supported an increased tax on third homes, banning the muezzin call and other laws because it was important to our coalition partners. We expect them to support this even if it’s not their preference”.

The proposal would define the entire Western Wall plaza as a holy site governed under the same definitions of religious practice and law set by Israel’s rabbinic courts and the Chief Rabbinate of Israel. 

Prayer services would be limited to state-approved Orthodox practice omitting Reform and Liberal services entirely.