A stampede has broken out at a Jewish religious festival in northern Israel, killing nearly forty people and injuring about 150 others.
The incident, which occurred early on Friday, ranks as one of the deadliest civilian disasters in Israeli history.
It took place during the celebrations of Lag BaOmer at Mount Meron with tens of thousands in attendance.
Huge crowds, mainly ultra-Orthodox Jews, assemble every year to pay respects to Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, a 2nd century sage and mystic who is buried there. Thousands traditionally light bonfires, pray and dance as part of the celebrations.
Describing the incident as a “great tragedy”, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said everyone was praying for the victims.
About 100,000 people attended the event, according to media estimates.
An official of one of Israel’s renowned rescue services told reporters that he was horrified by how crowded the event had been, saying the site was equipped to handle about a quarter of the number who were there.
The incident happened after midnight, and the cause of the stampede was not immediately clear. Online videos showed large numbers of ultra-Orthodox Jews packed together in tight spaces.
Citing an eyewitness who was not fully identified, Israeli Army Radio said “masses of people were pushed into the same corner and a vortex was created.”
A first row of people fell down, and then a second row, where he was standing, also began to fall down from the pressure of the stampede, the witness reportedly said.
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