Israelis mourn their dead
ISRAEL’S ultra-Orthodox residents exist in a world within the world, citizens of Israel by pledging their allegiance, attention and obedience instead to their rabbis and God. In isolated enclaves, they are exempt from the military draft, outside the national school system and largely oblivious to the surrounding culture.
Now, this shocked country is asking whether that self-segregation – and the secular politicians who have enabled it for decades – is responsible for the worst civilian catastrophe in Israel’s history, the trampling death of 45 ultra-Orthodox men and boys at a massively overcrowded religious festival early on Friday.
The ultra-Orthodox, or Haredim as they are known in Israel, follow some of the most conservative tenets in Judaism and have a lifestyle based on the Jewish culture that evolved hundreds of years ago in the communities of Eastern Europe. Since Israel’s founding, state leaders have sought to preserve this culture after much of it was devastated during World War II.
When more than 100 000 members of the Haredim convened for a boisterous annual festival at an ancient rabbi’s tomb on Mount Meron, they overflowed a narrow, sloped compound known to both government and religious leaders as a potentially dangerous setting.
Yesterday, as the final victims were being buried and flags around the country flew at half-mast in a national day of mourning, multiple investigations were getting under way that will target police planning, local regulators, site managers and national ministries.
Already, journalists and whistleblowers have unearthed a paper trail of warnings ignored, recommendations overruled and absent supervision. Officials have been called to account for meetings in recent weeks in which specific recommendations from health and safety authorities were overruled at the behest of Haredi groups determined to have the festival, which was cancelled last year in the midst of the pandemic.
Those facing questions include Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – who has depended on ultra-Orthodox political parties to maintain his governing coalition in recent years – Public Security Minister Amir Ohana and director-general of the Holy Sites Yossi Schwinger.
Members of parliament, noting that public safety ultimately lies with public officials, called for an independent national commission to investigate the government’s role. But beneath the particular inquiries, a broader sense quickly emerged that the tragedy would have been far less likely in a setting – and within a community – that was more fully subject to normal government strictures. “It’s part of the fact that the Haredim have their own autonomy, which could not exist without the resources and the acquiescence of the state,” said Yoram Bilu, professor emeritus of anthology and psychology at the Hebrew University. “Look at what goes on at Israeli rock festivals. The demands from the police and the authorities are stricter by far.”
Even some Haredi leaders said the time had come to re-evaluate the relationship of ultra-Orthodox communities – which have grown to account for about 13% of Israel’s population – with the state that surrounds them.
The soul-searching began even as medical examiners identified the last of the 45 victims and the final funerals were held around the country. Thirteen people remained hospitalized yesterday, including two in serious condition.
The stampede occurred after Haredi men and boys – with women in a separate area – gathered for an annual commemoration at the tomb of a revered 2nd century rabbi. The night of singing and dancing and bonfires turned suddenly to tragedy as the huge crowd surged toward the exits. Some reportedly fell on slippery steps, causing crushing pile-ups and panic in the confined setting.
Haredi rabbis and leaders of Haredi political parties reportedly pressed for unfettered access to the site for what is Israel biggest religious festival of the calendar. Israel’s Kan radio yesterday reported details of a meeting two weeks before the event in which officials waved away requests from police and health officials to limit the size of the crowd because the move would require agreement from “relevant Hasidic courts”.