Elias Bejjani/Heartily Felt Condolences To The Israeli Families Of Today’s Victims Of The LagBOmer Tragedy/بحزن شديد وأسى علمنا بالكارثة الإنسانية التي وقعت في إسرائيل اليوم. نتقدم بأحر التعازي لأهالي الضحايا ونصلي من أجل شفاء كل المصابين
Heartily Felt Condolences To The Israeli Families Of Today’s Victims Of The LagBOmer Tragedy
Elias Bejjani/April 30/2021 Like every individual who adores and values human lives, I was extremely shocked and deeply saddened to learn this morning about the dire tragedy that took place in Israel during the LagBOmer celebrations at Mt. Meron. I offer my heartily felt condolences to all the families of the victims, and wish a full recovery to all those injured.
بحزن شديد وأسى علمنا بالكارثة الإنسانية التي وقعت في إسرائيل اليوم. نتقدم بأحر التعازي لأهالي الضحايا ونصلي من أجل شفاء كل المصابين.
خلفية الحدث ارتفاع عدد قتلى حادث التدافع في إسرائيل إلى 45.. تل أبيب: «الشرق الأوسط أونلاين»/30 نيسان/2021
قُتل ما لا يقل عن 44 شخصاً سحقاً، في حشد، خلال احتفال ديني في إسرائيل، اليوم (الجمعة)، فيما وصفه رئيس الوزراء بنيامين نتنياهو بأنه «كارثة كبيرة»، بحسب وكالة «رويترز» للأنباء.
وكانت سلطات الإنقاذ أعلنت، في وقت سابق، مقتل 28 شخصاً عندما حدث التدافع، إثر احتشاد عشرات الآلاف من اليهود المتشددين عند قبر الحاخام شيمعون بار يوشاي، لاحتفال لاك بوعومر السنوي الديني، الذي يشمل الصلاة طوال الليل والأغاني والرقص. وذكرت خدمة «ماجن ديفيد أدوم» للإسعاف أن طائرات هليكوبتر نقلت الجرحى إلى مستشفيات في شمال إسرائيل، وقال الجيش الإسرائيلي إن قوات البحث والإنقاذ والفرق الطبية تدفقت على مكان الحادث. ووصف مسؤولو الإسعاف الحادث بأنه تدافع، وقالوا إن 103 أشخاص أصيبوا، فيما وُصِف بأنه تدافع، وقال شهود إن من بين الضحايا أطفالاً. وقال شلومو كاتز (36 عاماً): «كنا نقف وننتظر أصدقائنا وكنا ندخل للرقص، وفجأة رأينا مسعفين من (ماجن ديفيد أدوم) يهرولون»، ثم رأى سيارات الإسعاف تخرج «واحدة تلو الأخرى»، وأدرك أن خطباً ما حدث. وتابع: «تنحينا جانباً بينما كانت سيارات الإسعاف تخرج وتدخل، وانتظرنا حتى تمكنا من الخروج ببطء».وتم تنظيم هذا التجمع في تحدّ لمسؤولي الصحة الذين أبدوا قلقهم من أن الازدحام يمكن أن يشكل خطر الإصابة بـ«كوفيد – 19». ووصف نتنياهو الحادث على موقع «تويتر» بأنه «كارثة كبيرة».
Background Israel stampede: dozens die in crush at Lag BaOmer religious festival
Rosie Scammell and Tal Machluf/The National/April 30/2021
At least 150 injured as tens of thousands gathered for festival at Mount Meron. Israel on Friday faced one of its worst peacetime disasters after 45 pilgrims were killed in a stampede at a religious festival, with 150 people injured and families left searching for missing relatives. Mourners gathered on Friday evening at Jerusalem’s largest cemetery, weeping as one by one refrigerated trucks arrived bringing the victims for burial. “It was a disaster,” said Elhanan Mamo, one of the first paramedics on the scene at Mount Meron, in northern Israel, where thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews were celebrating the Lag BaOmer holiday. A senior paramedic with the Magen David Adom ambulance service, he described the “horrible sight” as he arrived at around 1am to see victims crushed to death under dozens of people.After police officers and soldiers arrived to clear the crowds, Mr Mamo said teams tried to resuscitate those unconscious and treat others who were seriously injured. “Within 10 to 15 minutes all the wounded were evacuated and then came the hard part of dozens lying dead,” he told The National. “Children, young, single, guys, not many adults. Lying lifeless. People who walked a few minutes ago, just collapsed into themselves,” Mr Mamo said. At least three boys were among those killed, the youngest aged nine, according to Medics used hundreds of ambulances, while some of the injured were airlifted to hospitals as reinforcements were drawn in from across the country. The mobile phone network crashed while families tried to contact their relatives on the mountain, police said, while authorities sought to evacuate the area.
A survivor recalled the moment he was heading towards the lighting of a bonfire, a central part of Lag BaOmer celebrations, and realised the area had become packed with pilgrims. “People were pushing each other,” Abraham told Channel 12 television, explaining that he was among those who slipped and fell on other worshippers. “People did not know where to start and where to finish and they tried to get people out from the bottom, instead of the top,” the pilgrim from Jerusalem said. “I managed to breathe and begged people to take me out,” said Abraham, who suffered minor injuries. “It was awful. There were screams, also of people you slowly didn’t hear any more.” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the site hours later and announced a national day of mourning on Sunday. US President Joe Biden spoke to the Israeli leader to offer his “profound condolences”.”The loss of life among worshipers practicing their faith is heartbreaking,” he said in a statement, adding US officials were trying to verify reports that Americans were among the dead. The UAE’s Ambassador to Israel, Mohamed Al Khaja, tweeted that he was “very saddened to hear about the tragedy” on Mount Meron. Israeli authorities had expected hundreds of thousands of Jews to attend the Lag BaOmer celebrations, with festivities including dancing and lighting bonfires on Mount Meron. The event was severely restricted last year because of the coronavirus pandemic, but officials allowed it to go ahead this year and posted 5,000 officers for the occasion. Defence Minister Benny Gantz said the authorities would investigate “the failures, drawing the necessary conclusions and applying them going forward so that this type of tragedy never repeats itself”.With more than half the country’s population vaccinated against coronavirus, last month Israel eased most of its restrictions and authorities allowed events to take place with some restrictions.
