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Israel’s Netanyahu booed by bereaved protesters at stampede site
Israeli PM calls for day of mourning on Sunday as he announced investigation into the stampede that killed 44 people.
International
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has announced a full investigation into the deadly stampede at a Jewish religious festival in the town of Mount Meron, where he was booed by protesting relatives of the victims.
According to the Israeli media, protesters hurled empty bottles and shouted insults at Netanyahu, who travelled to the pilgrimage site in the north of the country, where at least 44 people died and 150 others were injured in the stampede during Lag BaOmer celebrations.
Netanyahu, who described it as one of the “worst” disasters in Israel’s history, announced Sunday to be a “national day of mourning” and expressed sympathy to the families of the victims. He also met police and others involved in rescue efforts.
Meanwhile, President Reuven Rivlin’s office called for those in search of people still missing to contact the presidential office. “We will make every effort to find them,” he said.
Health Minister Yuli Edelstein visited some of the injured at Ziv Medical Center in northern Israel’s Safed on Friday morning.
Edelstein said almost all of the victims had been identified, reported the Israeli media.