The accident comes less than a month after a giant stampede that left 45 people dead, including many children, during a pilgrimage involving thousands of Orthodox Jews to Mount Meron in northern Israel. The collapse on Sunday (May 16th) of bleachers at a synagogue in an Israeli settlement near Jerusalem left two dead and many minor injuries, local authorities reported.
Hundreds of worshipers were gathered to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Shavuot (Jewish Pentecost) at a synagogue in the settlement of Givat Zeev, in the occupied West Bank, when part of the bleachers gave way under their feet.
According to a spokesperson for Magen David Adom, the local equivalent of the Red Cross, around 60 people were injured, five of them seriously, in the collapse of this structure. ” in construction “.
Prohibition of prayer in the building
And according to the Israeli police, two people lost their lives in this incident. “It was forbidden to pray in this building”, explained on the spot the commander of the police of Jerusalem, Doron Tourgeman.
The first images released by the Israeli media show the back row of the synagogue, where dozens of men stood praying, breaking in seconds, throwing worshipers to the ground and creating a crowd movement.
“My heart goes out to the victims of the Givat Zeev disaster. Army forces, led by Home Front Command and the Air Force, are trying to assist in the evacuation. I pray for the safety of the injured ”, tweeted Benny Gantz, Israel’s defense minister.