Raoul Wootliff is the The Times of Israel s political correspondent.
Ultra-Orthodox Jews gather at the grave site of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai at Mount Meron in northern Israel on April 29, 2021, as they celebrate the Jewish holiday of Lag B Omer (JALAA MAREY / AFP)
The state comptroller announced Monday that he would be opening a special investigation into the disaster at the Mount Meron compound where 45 people were crushed to death last week, saying that the tragedy was “preventable.”
“I intend to launch a special investigation into the circumstances that led to this disaster, the preparation of the various bodies, both this year and during the years that have elapsed since the State Comptroller’s report from 2011,” said Matanyahu Englman at a Jerusalem press conference.
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Israeli flags lowered to half-staff in honor of Mount Meron crush victims, at the Knesset in Jerusalem, May 2, 2021. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Amid growing questions over the lack of state oversight at the Mount Meron compound where 45 people were crushed to death late last week, Defense Minister Benny Gantz appealed to Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit on Sunday to give his legal opinion on the feasibility of forming a state commission of inquiry under the transitional government.
“There is an urgency in forming a committee quickly so that it can carry out a preliminary probe while information is readily available,” Gantz wrote in a letter to Mandelblit.
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Ultra Orthodox Jews attend the funeral of Abraham Ambon in Jerusalem on May 3, 2021. Amnon was one of the victims of the Meron disaster, where 45 people were crushed to death during a Lag b Omer celebration. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Abraham Daniel Ambon, a 21-year-old Yeshiva student from Argentina, was buried Monday morning, in the last funeral of the 45 victims of the Mount Meron disaster.
Ambon’s funeral took place at the Heichal Yitzhak Yeshiva in Jerusalem, after his parents landed in Israel early Monday morning from Argentina.
Hundreds attended the funeral and joined the procession from the Jerusalem yeshiva to the Har HaMenuhot Cemetery.
Seeing Beyond the Colors of Har Meron: Har Meron and Chesbon Nefesh | The Jewish Press - JewishPress com | Paula R Stern | 21 Iyyar 5781 – May 3, 2021 jewishpress.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from jewishpress.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Shas leader Deri says state must take control of Meron compound
Moran Azulay |
Published: 05.03.21 , 17:17
In his first comments since the Meron disaster, Interior Minister Aryeh Deri said Monday that he will support any initiative by the state to take full responsibility for the mountain compound. The Meron disaster was a decree from God, but this does not exempt us from inquiry, he said during a Knesset memorial session. There were legal troubles and this must end. It is time to take full responsibility for the compound. I will support any such action and I am sure the ultra-Orthodox public will do too.