The closure of Meron, which the Va’adas HaChamisha had stated would take place on Thursday due to the lack of insurance coverage, has been suspended after the government threatened to take over the management of the site instead.

Earlier this week, the Va’adas HaChamisha sent a letter to the Religious Affairs Ministry explaining that since the Meron disaster no insurance companies will agree to secure the site, putting the members of the committee at risk of personal liability suits and forcing them to close the site unless a solution can be found. However, the letter backfired because instead of prompting the government to find a solution for the insurance coverage, it instead threatened to take over the site’s management. In the wake of the government’s threat, the Va’adas HaChamisha responded on Thursday that it is suspending the closure of the site.

The Religious Affairs Ministry’s Director-General, Shimon Matouk, sent a response letter to the Va’adas HaChamisha on Wednesday, saying that the Kever Rashbi site is legally recognized as a Makom Kodesh and is frequented by many “believers.”

“Therefore it is of critical importance that it remains open to the public in accordance with the Holy Place Preservation Law, 1967,” he stated.

Matouk also noted that there are legal questions about whether the Va’adas HaChamisha even has the authority to completely close the site, “especially when alternative arrangements have not been considered, including the possibility of transferring management of the site to the State. It should also be noted that according to the provisions of the plan applied to the site, the permitted use of the buildings are public use and as such they must remain open to the general public.”

“In accordance with the above, insofar as you stand by your announcement of your intention to close the site, we request that the members of the Va’adas HaChamisha inform us of this immediately in order that the full operational implications stemming from this announcement can be examined. It should be emphasized that after consultations on this matter, the State is prepared to immediately take over the full management of the Rashbi site in order that the site not be closed, in accordance with the law.”

Eli Friend, the director of Kever Rashbi, responded to the letter by stating: “In light of the legal questions noted in your letter, the Va’adas HaChamisha has decided to suspend the closure of the site until we obtain a legal opinion detailing the available legal options in accordance with the Protection of Holy Places Law, 1967.”

Friend continued the letter by stating that the Va’adas HaChamisha has efficiently managed the site for years, and throughout the years has never been sued except for one minor case which was eventually withdrawn. He then reiterated the points he wrote in his first letter, that ironically, despite the committee’s efficient management of the site, they find themselves without insurance due to the disaster that happened on Lag B’Omer, the only day of the year that the State, rather than the committee, is in charge of the site.

Friend concluded by noting that the Deputy Attorney General has expressed her position that “it is appropriate that the State provide the insurance coverage for the site.”

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)