Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz threatens: 'Pikuach Nefesh' in the Rashbi's Zion, if the budget is not settled - I will terminate my position on the 'Committee of Five''

Following a temporary court order suspending budget transfers approved by the Finance Committee: The Director General of the Ministry of Religious Services, Yehuda Avidan, announced earlier this week that, in the absence of a budgetary source for ongoing activities, the services of the 'National Center for the Development of Holy Places' will be completely discontinued - as early as the beginning of September.

The budget shortfall threatens to lead to operational collapse and the closure of holy sites even before the Tishrei holidays. The result will be a real danger to lives at the Rashbi's tomb in Meron and other holy sites.

""The reality in the holy places has reached the red line," says the Ministry of Religious Services.

Following this, the Rabbi of the Western Wall and Holy Places, Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, wrote a letter to the Deputy Attorney General, Dr. Gil Limon, in which he issued an ultimatum, stating that if the budget of the 'National Center for Holy Places' was not regulated, he would terminate his position on the 'Committee of Five' - the body entrusted by the state with the management, maintenance, and regulation of the Rashbi's tomb complex on Mount Meron.

In his letter, Rabbi Rabinowitz places a glaring warning sign before the Deputy Attorney General:

• Life insurance in simple terms: Rabbi Rabinowitz unequivocally states that this is a question of 'pikuach nefesh', without any exaggeration, both in the Rashbi's tomb complex and at other holy sites.
• Danger of another disaster: Only five years after the terrible disaster on Mount Meron, hundreds of thousands of worshippers arrive for the Days of Mercy and Atonement and the High Holy Days. Managing such a complex and sensitive site without an approved budget and stable management is a safety and security negligence.
• Ultimatum and refusal to take responsibility for a default: The chairman of the 'Committee of Five' makes it clear that without immediate regulation of the budget and the elimination of the impasse, it will not be possible to handle the heavy burden and he will be forced to resign from his position immediately.
  The meaning is straightforward and clear.: The shutdown of the national center on the eve of the Tishrei holidays jeopardizes public safety and the safety of hundreds of thousands of pilgrims. Urgent legal and budgetary intervention is the only way to prevent the next step.