Police in Bnei Brak are gearing up for the funeral of the wife of an ultra-Orthodox community leader, days after authorities were criticized for not stepping in to prevent hundreds from attending a procession there in contravention of social distancing rules.
Channel 12 news reports that police officials are attempting to negotiate with community leaders to keep people from congregating at the funeral for Aliza Friedman, the wife of one of the leaders of the hardline Jerusalem Faction sect.
Attendees at a Bnei Brak funeral on March 29, 2020. (screen capture: Twitter)
A midnight funeral for another leader of the group late Saturday and early Sunday drew some 400 people. Police said they did not enforce the rules in order to avoid rioting, which they feared would make the situation worse, but were still reprimanded, and have since stepped up enforcement there and in other ultra-Orthodox areas.
In Modiin Illit, an ultra-Orthodox settlement, police have arrested six members of the sect Wednesday morning for holding an illegal prayer gathering.
Bnei Brak is seen as the largest virus epicenter in the country, with 571 reported cases in a population of just under 200,000 people.
Officials are reportedly leaning toward closing off the city to prevent the spread of the virus, but have so far only placed some checkpoints around the city to check IDs of some entering the Tel Aviv suburb.
Israeli police talk to a driver at a checkpoint in Bnei Brak, a predominantly ultra-Orthodox city east of Tel Aviv, on March 31, 2020, as part of measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus. (Jack Guez/AFP)
Under Health Ministry rules, only 20 people are allowed to attend a funeral. Prayer gatherings of more than two people are forbidden.
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