Overview
- Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, acting early Monday after security reviews, canceled the traditional large Meron gathering and limited observance to a symbolic format under Home Front Command rules that cap each gathering at 1,500 people in Meron and nearby towns.
- Operational steps now include police blocking pilgrim arrivals to Mount Meron, while the central bonfire led by Rav Meilech Biderman has been relocated to a large outdoor site in Jerusalem.
- The Home Front Command extended its northern guidelines through 8 p.m. Tuesday, reflecting continued cross-border tension with Hezbollah and concern about the ability to clear crowds during an alert.
- The move triggered immediate fallout as Meron project coordinator Yossi Deitch resigned in protest and allies such as MK Meir Porush argued the cap was inconsistent with large secular events that recently went ahead elsewhere.
- A phased entry plan that divides the site into zones of 1,500 people at a time over roughly 40 hours was reported Tuesday to be under review and could allow tens of thousands to visit, in a design shaped by lessons from the 2021 crowd crush that killed 45 people, though officials have not yet approved it.