A week before the revelry: this is how we hope to prevent the next Meron disaster

63 illegal buildings have so far been evacuated on Mount Meron, as part of an extensive effort to reduce the danger in the area of ​​the Rashbi tomb. In Meron - an offense "

Eli Ashkenazi Vicky Adamkar

10/05/2022

Tuesday, 10 May 2022, 21:20 Updated: 21:29

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In the video: The commissioner testifies at the investigation committee for the Mount Meron disaster (Photo: GPO)

The workers who today (Tuesday) completed the construction of a staircase near the tomb of Rashbi (Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai) in Meron, worked very hard in the hope of catching up with the clock hands that are advancing towards the eve of Lag B'Omer in eight days.

A year after the heavy disaster that killed 45 celebrants who came to the Rashbi celebration, the tomb area is changing and new arrangements have been made for the celebration this year.

This morning the Land Enforcement Authority announced that "the mission is complete." "Y" near the grave marker.

According to the authority, over the past year, 63 illegal structures erected over the years have been evacuated at the popular site - a figure that once again illustrates the depth of persistence that persists over the years in the holy place and the state's disregard for the lawlessness that prevailed.

According to the Real Estate Enforcement Authority, the illegal structure that was evacuated sat on public land "and thwarted the new detailed plan of the Rashbi compound." In Nazareth, while these state that there is a special public interest in the demolition of the building. "

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Reduce the density.

The celebration on Mount Meron, last year (Photo: Walla !, Eli Ashkenazi)

Along with the demolition work on the one hand and the construction on the other, which will continue until close to the revelry, the sale of tickets to the revelry complex began yesterday.

This is a significant change in terms of the possibility for the celebrating public to participate in the revelry, a change designed to regulate, monitor and control the number of celebrants at any given moment.

The large density around the Rashbi tomb mark last year and in the years before it and the inability to control and regulate the crowd was the main cause of the heavy disaster caused by the great hustle and bustle. Thus, according to the plan formulated by the headquarters headed by Zvi (Zviki) Tessler, the project manager responsible for the celebration, which was approved today by the Knesset's Internal Security Committee. , Or a private car. The passenger will pay for the trip itself. Tickets can be ordered through the website, by phone or through one of the 2,300 stands scattered in synagogues across the country and used throughout the year for donations.

The amount of tickets for each four-hour time window is a limited amount, to avoid overcrowding.

Yesterday, after the sale began, within a few minutes thousands of tickets were snatched for the most requested hours for the celebrants, both the hours of lighting the fire near the tomb mark.

There are institutions that have placed people on computer stations so that they can get their hands on the requested cards, which they will give to their donors.

Trying to prevent the next disaster.

The bodies of those killed on Mount Meron (Photo: Reuters, Yishai Yerushalmi / in rooms)

For a short time the ordering site crashed yesterday, but after a few minutes it was back in operation.

By noon today, about 69,000 tickets had been ordered.

About 15% of all tickets will be transferred directly to Hasidism, which, unlike previous years, will not be allowed to light the fire near the tomb mark this year.

According to the decision made this year, only one stork will light a fire - the Boyan stork, which has the power to be the first among the storks to light a fire every year.

This decision was made as a result of the understanding that the high density in recent years was due to several factors, one of which was the large number of ignitions made in the ranking.

Participation in lighting became a factor that led the celebrants to stay on the mountain and move from lighting one stork to lighting another stork and so on.

Over the years, the lighting has become a kind of status symbol, indicating the importance and status of storks;

Thus, the number of ignitions increased and reached 25 different ignitions.

Another significant change is the abolition of the "Hospitality" institution in the celebration.

Various bodies would set up every year on the mountain special complexes for distributing food and drink to the celebrants, and the institution is considered part of the revelry experience.

It is considered a great privilege to have hospitality and this also brings with it large financial contributions.

The organizers of the celebration understood that this is another factor that delayed the celebrants on the mountain and ordered that except for cold drinks, food distribution will not be allowed and it will only be on the slopes of the mountain.

Despite the many preparations and plans, Arieh, a resident of Tiberias, who comes to the Rashbi tomb throughout the year and celebrates 25 years in a row, since he was five, has shown skepticism and apprehension about what is expected, he said. This is not a good sign.

"I am even more concerned about the fact that the open areas around the grave have not grown, and I am afraid that it will still be crowded this year as well."

There are also skeptics.

The celebration on Mount Meron, last year (Photo: Eli Ashkenazi)

Aryeh expressed skepticism in the face of the obedience the public will show, saying that in his opinion many will stay in the compound beyond the four hours allotted.

"How will they end up leaving after four hours?", He wondered, "I'm afraid many will tweet about the guidelines."

He himself tried to order a ticket for the lighting time but unfortunately failed and has not yet decided for which alternative time window yes to reserve a ticket for himself.

At the revelry headquarters they express confidence in the general public and believe that in addition to leaving one lone lighting and eliminating the distribution of food, the public will also show understanding that if he prolongs his stay on the mountain he is preventing others from coming.

The hope is that if enforcement action is required to evict people after four hours, it will only be on the margins.

In addition, an extensive information campaign was conducted among the public, in which important rabbis are quoted who call on the public to obey the instructions.

There are even those who called for not getting to the revelry.

For example, the rabbi of Bnei Brak, the Gaon Rabbi Massoud ben Shimon, said that "Staying in Meron for more than four hours is the next prayer in an offense, which is not accepted (...). One thing must be remembered: multiplicity of prayers is a good thing, but when it is "It was caused with an offense, that is, if the multiplicity of prayer causes sorrow to any Jew who cannot come and participate because the time has elapsed, then this is the next mitzvah in the offense, and if so, God forbid the prayer should not be accepted," he stated.

The head of the yeshiva, Rabbi Meir Mazuz, even called on the public not to come to Meron during the festivities.

"Do not go on Lag B'Omer, just in time," he said, adding: "People are stressed, pushed and blocked.

What happened last year, passed all imagination.

"45 killed ... you do not have to go on Lag B'Omer, you can go a week before, a week after and those who walk will also be careful not to go through the four hours," he said.

At the beginning of the discussion at the end of the discussion, the plan for the celebration was approved, the committee's chairman, MK Meirav Ben-Ari, said that she "still can not understand how this mountain was safe in the past, there were probably many miracles. Unfortunately, last year's event was inevitable."

She added that "we as a state must do everything to correct and ensure the safety of visitors to the place."

She rejected the criticism and said that "this is nonsense, instead of understanding the size of the hour and mobilizing, it is a pity that due to political constraints we bring regulations and not a proposal for primary legislation."

According to her, "without regulations, all parties will be short of treatment and their purpose is to give all parties the tools to start working in a legal framework."

Moni Matuk, director general of the Ministry of Religious Affairs, added that the ministry is investing NIS 59 million in the event this year. For comparison, in the previous year the celebration was budgeted at only NIS 15 million.

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