A life-threatening construction, erected for the purpose of building a huge arbor, was dismantled tonight (Saturday through Sunday) in Jerusalem for the safety of the residents.
The dangerous construction, which was assembled at a height of 12 meters on Sonnenfeld Street in Jerusalem, blocked part of the lane of travel on the street and caused a severe disruption to traffic.
Documentation: Demolition of the huge arbor built without a permit in the Beit Israel neighborhood of Jerusalem // Photo: Jerusalem Municipality
The move led to clashes between ultra-Orthodox extremists and local police.
This was after the builders appealed to the court to issue a restraining order to dismantle the giant arbor, but the judges rejected the request.
The police arrived at the scene to carry out the dismantling work, and the extremists at the scene began to confront them.
The Jerusalem municipality said of the incident: "The construction and the huge sukkah balcony above it were built without a permit and posing a real and safe danger to the balcony users, pedestrians, nearby businesses, the nearby HMO branch, children in the neighborhood, nearby cars and every passerby."
The Jerusalem municipality explained the move: "We are working to prevent further disasters, as happened this year on Mount Meron and Givat Zeev, in which unfortunately 47 people lost their lives.
The Jerusalem Municipality, with the assistance of the Israel Police, acted to remove the danger.
The dismantling of the construction was carried out after the dialogue with the builders was exhausted and the operation was repeatedly postponed, in the belief that the builders would meet their obligation and dismantle what was required themselves. "
Dismantling of the huge arbor on the site // Photo: Jerusalem Municipality Spokeswoman,
For several days now, a dialogue has been taking place with the builders of the construction and they have even been offered an alternative to erecting a sukkah on the nearby land.
This offer was accepted by the organizers, along with their commitment to dismantle the construction themselves within five days, but this commitment was not carried out.
This forced the municipality and the police to carry out the dismantling themselves, in order to remove the danger.
Despite this, the municipality and the police agreed to allow an additional period of time and provide a second chance for self-dissolution, but even this commitment on the part of the builders was not fulfilled.
The builders decided to apply to the district court and apply for a restraining order to carry out the demolition.
The district court ruled in two different decisions that there was no reason to grant a stay of execution and that the demolition could be carried out.
The ultra-Orthodox public associated with the construction of the sukkah stated that it was a sukkah built by one of the most important rabbis.
The sukkah was built at great height on iron pillars (scaffolding), and they claimed that the rabbi presented permits from two engineers who approved the construction of the sukkah, but the court approved the dismantling of the sukkah.
