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May. 5, 2021
Israel s police commissioner asked the attorney general to see to the formation of an external panel, headed by a judge, to examine the incident last week in which 45 people were crushed to death while celebrating the Lag Ba’omer festival at Mount Meron in northern Israel.
Police commissioner Yaakov Shabtai made the request Monday after asking to speak with Avichai Mendelblit ahead of a meeting of police commanders. People close to Shabtai say that he requested an “inquiry committee,” but Mendelblit’s associates say the police chief specified a “state commission of inquiry,” whose powers are much broader.
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Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai (L) and Public Security Minister Minister Amir Ohana at the bonfire lighting celebrations for Lag B Omer, hours before the tragedy, April 30, 2021 (Israel Police)
Public Security Minister Amir Ohana reportedly told Israel Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai to drop a request for a state commission of inquiry into the deadly Meron festival disaster, Channel 13 News reported Monday.
There have been increasing demands for a state probe of the tragedy at Lag B’Omber celebrations last week when 45 people were killed in a crush and over 150 injured.
During a meeting of senior police commanders, Shabtai declared that he would make a formal request to Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit to set up a state commission of inquiry, the report said.
Police braces for investigation over Meron disaster
Despite public support for the force and rampant criticism of the politicians for their part in the disaster, Police commissioner backs down from demand for commission of inquiry; Northern command chief says proud of cops
Eli Senior |
Published: 05.04.21 , 11:59
The Northern District police are preparing for the Police Internal Investigations Department’s inquiry into the Mount Meron disaster.
The inquiry into the civilian disaster that left 45 dead and 150 injured will include the testimonies of officers and senior officers alike who will face questioning.
4 צפייה בגלריה
Northern District chief Shimon Lavi
Northern District chief Shimon Lavi, who was the first official to assume responsibility for the disaster, referred in a video to the wave of support he and the police received from the public, following the announcement of an internal inquiry into the disaster.
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.