Police chief says he won’t step down, will continue to cooperate with Meron probe

Police commissioner Kobi Shabtai says he will not step down following damning findings from a state commission of inquiry that found him and other senior officials chiefly responsible for the 2021 Mount Meron crush that left 45 people dead.

“Together with colleagues in the senior staff, I will continue to lead the Israel Police during this complicated time, on the way to achieving goals in the fight against crime and war on terror,” he says in a note to officers.

Shabtai says he will respect whatever decision the panel ultimately makes, and that the police force will continue to cooperate with it, praising the work of the committee.

“We at the police and myself as its head called for an unfettered commission of inquiry from the start, and we’ve emphasized that we will cooperate with it to ensure that an event like this never repeats in the State of Israel,” he writes.

The commission released initial findings earlier that found Shabtai and other top police to blame for the 2021 disaster, as well as former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former public security minister Amir Ohana and others.

Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai (L) and Public Security Minister Amir Ohana at the bonfire lighting celebrations for Lag B’Omer, hours before the tragedy, April 30, 2021 (Israel Police)

The Likud party responded to the findings by criticizing the timing as politically motivated to affect upcoming elections.

Shlomo Diskind, whose brother was among the victims, tells the Kan broadcaster that he is disappointed more heads are not rolling, noting that only northern police chief Shimon Lavi has stepped down in the wake of the disaster.

“Eighteen people got warnings today due to their responsibility for the disaster, and only one has gone home, and not because of what happened but because he understood where it was going. Unfortunately, the rest of them will continue to hold their jobs and will still be there for the next annual pilgrimage,” he says.

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