The Israel Police is completing its preparations for the Rashbi celebration in Meron that will take place on Lag BaOmer - starting on Saturday night and Sunday.
In addition to the Israel Police, emergency and rescue agencies from the Ministry of Public Security are taking part in the preparations for the event - rescue forces, fire and rescue, and more.
The coordination of the event with the public and the police is done through the 'Center for Holy Places' of the Ministry of Religious Services, and government ministries and other bodies are involved.
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The celebration of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai on Lag BaOmer is the largest religious event of its kind in the State of Israel, and during the week of Lag BaOmer, hundreds of thousands of people visit the Rashbi's tomb.
The police attach the utmost importance to its operational assessments, and thousands of police officers and Border Guard soldiers will take part in the operation, and all technological means available to the Israel Police will be activated - all with the aim of maintaining order, ensuring the safety of visitors to the event, and allowing the masses to realize their desire to honor the Rashbi on Lag BaOmer.
The operation during the days of celebration - from Friday to Sunday in the late evening - and command of all police forces will be led by the Northern District Commander, and the head of the Traffic Division will command the traffic system in all its aspects in the sensitive and complex operation.
The police are preparing to reduce as much as possible the difficulty of reaching Meron and minimize the damage to the lives of residents.
Preparations for the operation will be carried out in three main stages:
• In the first phase, which began last Tuesday, Israel Police officers were stationed near the celebration area, with the aim of maintaining order in the area in preparation for the event.
• In the second and main phase of the operation, starting on Saturday night, the eve of Lag BaOmer, at 8:15 PM, and continuing until Sunday at 12:00 AM, hundreds of thousands of visitors will visit the complex. Approximately 5,000 police officers and soldiers are expected to operate at this stage. The police officers will be deployed on all traffic routes leading to Meron, in perimeter security circles and throughout the complex.
• Once the festivities are over, the third phase will begin, in which police officers will remain in the compound with the aim of returning the place to routine and regular activity.
As every year, the festivities will take place around predetermined lighting times.
The event will begin with the first lighting of the Bayan Hasidic lamp on Saturday night at 1:15 AM and will end with the last lighting of the Toldot Aharon Hasidic lamp on Sunday at 7:00 PM.
Traffic and parking arrangements:
As part of drawing lessons from previous years and in order to ensure the safety of road users and immigrants, following the example of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, it was decided that this year too, arrivals for Hilulah will be permitted. Only by public transportation and organized shuttles.
Public transportation lines throughout the country, and those leading to the north and Meron in particular, will be significantly increased in order to allow revelers to reach the complex comfortably and safely. Revelers arriving by public transportation will be dropped off and picked up near the revelry site at regulated terminals.
Traveling by public transportation will bring revelers to the revelry site safely, quickly and with maximum comfort. For passengers on public transportation, refreshment stations have been arranged on Route 6 "Alonit", on Route 722, the Guards Junction, and on Route 90, the Bezeq checkpoint.
Buses from private transportation companies will be directed to the parking lots in Ein Hozim and Frod - from there, revelers will be transported to the revelry site via shuttles, free of charge.
This year, the parking lots and the pedestrian paths leading to them will continue to be marked in different colors: red, yellow, blue and green - the color of the new terminal that was built for the benefit of the celebrants, in a manner that matches the color of the travel ticket, in order to make it easier for the celebrants to arrive at and leave the site.
Disabled people, with a disability certificate, who are limited to walking only, will arrive at the 'Safsofeh' parking lot via the Sheva intersection, where they will board the 'Ezer M'Zion' shuttle, to the grave plot or, alternatively, to the Ein Hozim parking lot via the Elifelet interchange.
VIPs with a regulated permit from the Center for Holy Places will arrive by prior arrangement at the Sheva Junction (Hananya Junction), where a police escort will lead them to the site of the celebration.
At the end of the celebration, when leaving the site, you should turn to the pedestrian route that matches the color, lighting, and flags of your travel ticket.
At any stage during the celebration, revelers are strictly prohibited from walking on the roads leading to the site for fear of putting their lives at risk.
There is great importance in conveying messages and emphases to the public of road users and the public celebrating even before the event.
Access to the celebration area and its vicinity will not be possible by private vehicles throughout the main phase of the event, as noted above. There is no point in trying to outsmart and bypass the checkpoints, as a large force of traffic police will be deployed on the traffic routes and on the dirt roads leading to Meron.
The following roads will be closed to private vehicle traffic starting Friday, May 12, 2017 at 7:00 AM until the end of the event:
Route 866 – from the Hananya intersection towards Meron.
Highway 89 – from Hiram Junction to Elifelet Interchange, in both directions (via Jish Junction).
Route 886 – from Dalton Junction to Ein Zeitim Square.
Highway 8900 – from the Yaar intersection in Biriyeh to Ein Zeitim Square.
The exit from Safed is on Route 89.
Entry or exit from Safed will be possible via Highway 8900, from the direction of Rosh Pina only.
In addition, the public of road users should take into account that, as necessary, during the days of celebration There is a possibility of blocking the following intercity traffic routes:
Highway 65 – Tzalamon towards Kadrim (as needed).
Highway 85 – from Rama Junction to Amiad Junction, in both directions (as needed).
We would like to emphasize that private vehicles will not be allowed to park in open areas and on the sides of the road. Vehicles parked in an unregulated manner, contrary to the instructions, will be towed and their owners will bear the towing costs.
Hundreds of police officers will be deployed on the roads leading to Meron in order to provide service to road users and the celebrating public.
The driving public is asked to be patient and obey the police officers' instructions and guidelines.
Residents living near Meron will be allowed to travel on the roads blocked to private vehicles, only upon presentation of an ID card stating their place of residence. Citizens who have booked guest rooms/bed and breakfast rooms will be asked to present a registration confirmation for the guest room/bed and breakfast room/hotel.
Meron residents who present an ID card or guests who present a registration certificate will be able to enter the Meron community with their vehicles until 12:00 noon on Friday. These vehicles will remain in the Meron community until the end of the festivities on Sunday late in the evening.
In light of the changes in traffic arrangements, drivers are required to pay attention to directional signs and roadside signage, as well as listen to the media.
The police will provide ongoing and vital information to the public, before and after the event, through hotline 110 (the national police information hotline, not hotline 100, which is used for emergencies) and to the media.
Children/adults with special needs who got lost - The Israel Police, in cooperation with ZAKA, opened a stand on the right side of the mountain, open to the general public, starting on Thursday, May 11, 2017, until the end of the event on Sunday, May 14, 2017.
The station distributes bracelets to children or adults with special needs, which have the phone numbers of the parents or responsible adult written on them, so that in the event that a child/adult gets lost, the person responsible for them can be easily located using the bracelet.
In addition, in any case where a child/adult goes missing, you can call 1220 from any phone or come to a ZAKA station. ZAKA volunteers and the Israel Police will work to locate the missing person.
At this stage, volunteers are already distributing bracelets in schools and kindergartens with parents' phone numbers on them so that during the festivities the children will wear the bracelets and if they get lost they can be easily located. So far, over 6,000 bracelets have been distributed.
The Israel Police appeals to the visiting public to adhere to the following safety rules:
• Do not climb electricity poles/fences/bus stops/trees and only move on roads marked for pedestrians.
• Small children should be kept close to an adult and not take your eyes off the children. Pay attention to the human pressure created in the area. Children should be given a hand or placed on their shoulders.
• It is recommended to pass through the ZAKA center on the way up the mountain on the right to pick up bracelets for children or adults with special needs, and to explain that in the event that someone gets lost, the parent/responsible adult will wait for them in the corner of the ZAKA center.
• Make sure to drink plenty of fluids, especially in hot weather.
• The public is asked to obey the instructions of the police and ushers and avoid crowding into the lighting area.
The Israel Police is prepared for any scenario and, if necessary, a public address system will be activated in various languages and instructions will be given to the public accordingly.
An information center will be open to the public during the event.
The information center will provide answers to all issues, during the following hours:
-Thursday: 10:00-22:00
-Friday hours: 08:00-18:00
- Saturday after Shabbat until the end of the event on Sunday, May 14, 2017
The information center phone number is: 1-700-500-679.
The phone number for the missing children hotline is: 1220 from any phone.
