The traditional Lag Ba'Omer pilgrimage at Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai's grave at Mount Meron will not take place this year due to the security concerns posed by the ongoing conflict with Hezbollah, the IDF announced on Thursday night.
Every year, hundreds of thousands of people head to Mount Meron to mark Lag Ba'Omer, the anniversary of the rabbi's death, at the gravesite.
Lag Ba'Omer is set to take place on the evening of May 25 this year. The holiday is marked by Jews around the world by lighting bonfires and other festivities. Besides for the anniversary of Bar Yochai's death, the day also marks when a plague that swept through the students of the sage Rabbi Akiva ended. The weeks leading up to Lag Ba'Omer are marked with some mourning customs by many Jews, including not listening to live music, not getting haircuts, and not having marriages, although there are varying customs concerning when and how these customs are kept.
"Despite the great importance of the event and the longstanding tradition to hold it, and in accordance with the updated situation assessments, it is not possible to hold the event the way it has been held in the past, and it is not possible to allow a gathering like this at the site," wrote the commander of Home Front Command, Rafi Milo, in his directives concerning the cancellation of the event.
The commander of Home Front Command added that there will be restrictions on gatherings in the Mount Meron area and a closure of parts of the area in accordance with the policy that will be set by Israel Police and the Jerusalem Affairs and Jewish Tradition Ministry.
Hezbollah attacks in area prompted decision to cancel event
The commander noted that the large number of participants who usually take part in the event, as well as the location of the site, the security threat posed to the public in the area, the Hezbollah attacks that have targeted Mount Meron during the war, and the lack of proper bomb shelters at the site, were taken into account when making the decision to cancel the event.
Since October 7th, Hezbollah has fired dozens of rockets toward the Mount Meron area on several occasions, including an attack just last week.
Milo stressed on Thursday that while he is "aware of the importance of the event and the specialness of the 18th of Iyar - the anniversary of the death of the Tanna Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, Lag Ba'Omer - as well as of the desire to reach the pilgrimage site for this great day. Nevertheless, the concern for the welfare and safety of the masses and the responsibility to protect the lives of the worshippers overrides any other consideration."
The directives issued by Home Front Command are legally binding, and violating them is a criminal offense.
The last time the pilgrimage was heavily restricted was in 2020, during the peak of the coronavirus pandemic. The event was still held, but attendance was heavily restricted due to the outbreak of the virus. In 2021, police attempted to implement restrictions as well to try and avoid a renewed outbreak of the coronavirus, but tens of thousands of people were still allowed to take part in the pilgrimage. During the 2021 pilgrimage, disaster struck when a deadly crowd crush occurred, killing 45 people and injuring over 100 others.