Israeli gov't cancels Lag B’Omer gathering at Mount Meron amid renewed Hezbollah fire

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided Sunday to cancel the annual Lag B’Omer celebration at Mount Meron in northern Israel due to security concerns following renewed Hezbollah attacks.

The decision, made in consultation with the security cabinet, came after the Israeli Home Front Command imposed gathering limits of up to 1,500 people in northern communities, including the Meron region. The restrictions took effect Sunday and will remain in place until at least 8 p.m. Monday Israel time.

“After several security assessments were held by the prime minister, and in light of the Home Front Command’s updated defense policy beginning April 26, 2026, the prime minister instructed that the events marking the celebration of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai at Meron will not take place this year in a mass-participation format, but only in a symbolic format,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in an official statement. 

The annual celebration usually attracts tens of thousands of Jews, particularly Orthodox worshippers who gather at the tomb of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai. However, due to Mount Meron’s proximity to the Lebanese border, Israeli authorities fear potential mass casualties if Hezbollah rockets or drones were to strike the site.

The Iranian-backed militant group had launched an attack on Israel in early March following the elimination of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and dozens of other top Iranian officials on Feb. 28. Israel responded with extensive airstrikes on Hezbollah positions across southern Lebanon, Beirut’s southern suburbs, and the Bekaa Valley, and later launched a ground operation aimed at pushing the group’s forces away from the border with northern Israeli communities.

The United States eventually brokered a 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, which the Trump administration said last week had been extended by an additional three weeks amid high-level talks in Washington, D.C. However, while the Lebanese government has opposed the Hezbollah-initiated war, it has so far been unable to prevent the group from launching rockets and drones from its territory.

Hezbollah has continued to fire on Israeli communities and troops in violation of the U.S.-brokered ceasefire.

“Despite declarations of a ceasefire, the reality on the ground proves that security along the confrontation line has not been restored, and fire toward our communities continues, including UAVs and sirens today,” the Confrontation Line Communities Forum said in an official statement. 

Moshe Davidovich, head of the Mateh Asher Regional Council, who heads the forum, urged the Israeli government to act forcefully against Hezbollah. 

“Our children’s blood is not cheap, and we will not wait for a disaster to make life-saving decisions,” Davidovich warned. 

Meir Porush of the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism party, who met with Netanyahu ahead of the cancellation of the Meron event, expressed disappointment that it would not take place. 

“It is impossible not to give the public even hope,” he said. 

Yossi Deitsch, who oversees the Meron event, expressed concern that some individuals would ignore the security regulations and still gather at the sacred site. 

“Last Shabbat there were 10,000 people in Meron, and suddenly on Lag B'Omer you limit it to 1,000?” Deitsch asked. “People will walk dozens of kilometers to reach Meron at any cost."

In April 2021, 45 people were crushed to death, and hundreds were injured at the Meron site when some 100,000 people gathered to celebrate the Lag B'Omer holiday.

The tragic event still ranks as one of Israel’s most deadly peacetime disasters.