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Security officials and rescuers at the scene of a fatal crush during Lag B Omer celebrations at Mt. Meron in northern Israel, Friday, April 30, 2021. (AP Photo)
A police assessment ahead of this year’s Lag B’Omer festivities on Mount Meron warned of the dangers of overcrowding at access points as well as the possibility of structures collapsing, and specifically cited dangers surrounding the exit route where 45 people lost their lives in a crush overnight Thursday-Friday, a TV report said.
Channel 13 reported that the document warned of overcrowding in the Toldot Aharon compound, the scene of the crush, and urged that the exit route be expanded.
Rising role of sharia economy in Indonesia
15 hours ago
16 hours ago 4th May 2021
Muslim fashion showed in an exhibition held on the sideline of Sharia Fair in Surabaya, East Java recently. ANTARA PHOTO/Moch Asim/wsj.
We can see that the role of sharia economy has continued to increase, thereby necessitating to put in place a reliable instrument, and we can develop this Indonesia is indubitably catching up with other countries in the development of the sharia economy, although the world s largest Muslim population nation was considered as being rather late in paying heed to Islamic economics.
The world s fourth most populous country has realized the need to tap the potential of sharia economy, as the State of Global Islamic Economy Report 2020-2021 indicated that Muslim consumers expenditure on halal food, beverage, pharmaceuticals, and tourism had reached US$2.02 trillion in 2019.
As the Sheikh Jarrah case awaits the court s decision, many voices can be heard asserting that Israeli Jews are colonizing .
Yet the simple truth is that no single factor caused the Meron disaster. Rather, a perfect storm of elements simultaneously came together, exposing a system filled with flaws many of them cultural in nature. The event should open up a period of national reckoning. Whether an honest reckoning will take place one marked by constructive and unifying measures will require Israelis to look deep down into their own behavior.
A holy gathering?
A trip to Meron on Lag B’Omer simultaneously reveals some of the best and some of the worst of Israeli society. Commemorating the life and teachings of a great sage, hundreds of thousands converge on the tomb of Bar Yochai, known also by the anacronym “Rashbi.” Pilgrims enjoy Chassidic music. Thousands can be seen reciting psalms, followed by early sunrise prayers.
Caught in tug of war between authorities, religious sects and interest groups, Israel's 2nd most-visited Jewish holy place has no full, official state oversight
Israel’s Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi David Lau March 29, 2018. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)
“The site needs to be handled differently. What is happening at the moment does not respect the place or human life. The state is obligated to take responsibility for it,” he said.
The chief rabbi also suggested spreading out the Lag B’Omer festivities to avoid overcrowding in the future.
“It could be that the events need to be divided over a whole week,” Lau told the Kan public broadcaster. He suggested that some bonfires and prayers could be held before Lag B’Omer, which falls on a particular date of the Hebrew calendar, with the more boisterous revelry taking place during and after the festival.