‘NEGLIGENCE’

Israeli Police Promise Arrests After Synagogue Seating Collapse Kills 2

Packed bleacher seating at a permit-less ultra-orthodox synagogue collapsed suddenly on Sunday, leaving two dead.

Bleacher seating collapsed at an Israeli synagogue on Sunday, killing two people and injuring around 100. Hundreds of ultra-orthodox Jews had gathered for a religious festival in Givat Zeev, a settlement town in the occupied West Bank. A video shows the packed bleachers collapsing, sending worshippers tumbling. Officials say that the event organizers had been issued warnings that their building, which was in a state of partial construction, was unsafe, and no permits had been given for the event. “We were called again to another event where there was negligence and a lack of responsibility. There will be arrests,” said Jerusalem district police chief Doron Turgeman. A similar event at a recent ultra-orthodox festival in Mount Meron left 45 men and boys dead.