Confiscated detonators
Photo: Jerusalem Police
The stockpile
Photo: Jerusalem Police
NIS 100K worth of wedding fireworks seized
Police crack down on extravagant fireworks use in Arab weddings; in latest incident, groom arrested at Shuafat refugee camp
The police on Wednesday confiscated NIS 100,000 NIS (roughly $25,800) worth of fireworks that were meant to go off during a wedding in the Shuafat refugee camp.
The groom, 28, and two of his relatives were arrested.
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One of the suspects told the police that the copious amounts of fireworks, which were bought from a distributor based in northern Israel, were intended to be ignited during the wedding festivities on Friday.
Confiscated fireworks arsenal (Photo: Jerusalem Police)
The police said that they have decided to crackdown on the use of illegal fireworks, a widespread trend in Arab communities around Jerusalem.
"Recently we've been seeing families competing for who could put on a bigger fireworks show at the wedding," a police official said. "These are rich families who buy expensive detonators."
If the stockpile hadn't been confiscated, the official said, the resulting display would have "put the annual Mount Herzl fireworks show to shame."
Extravagant display (Photo: Jerusalem Police)
As part of the crackdown, several raids have been conducted recently in Jerusalem's north after residents of adjacent neighborhoods complained of the noise made by the displays late into the night. The police have also been following up on intel about upcoming weddings.
In another such incident that occurred last month the police confiscated NIS 40,000 ($10,300) worth of fireworks and arrested a groom, his father and another relative.
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