The annual mass pilgrimage to Mount Meron is expected to be canceled at the defense establishment's orders due to the worsening security situation in the north and continued rocket alerts, officials involved in preparations for the event were told on Friday.
Government ministries involved in organizing the celebration, known in Hebrew as a hilula, were instructed to freeze preparations for the mass gathering, which had been expected to draw as many as 200,000 people.
The event is held each year on Lag BaOmer, a Jewish holiday marked by bonfires, music and pilgrimages to Meron, a mountain village in northern Israel near the Lebanese border. The site is home to the tomb of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, a second-century sage revered by many Jews, especially among ultra-Orthodox and traditional communities.
Despite the instruction to halt planning for the crowds, infrastructure work at the compound is continuing in order to preserve the option of holding the event if the security situation stabilizes.
For now, officials were told to freeze preparations related to the arrival of large numbers of worshippers, traffic routes and road closures on the day of the pilgrimage.
More than 100 million shekels, or about $34 million, have already been allocated for preparations, even though officials had assessed from the outset that the chances of the event taking place were low due to the security situation.
The Meron pilgrimage has long been one of the largest annual religious gatherings in Israel. It has also drawn intense scrutiny since 2021, when 45 people were crushed to death in a crowd disaster at the site, the deadliest civilian disaster in Israel’s history. Since then, authorities have placed tighter limits and safety controls on the event.