The City of Bnei Brak and Dan District Police have agreed on
special measures -- including hidden cameras -- to counter
the harassment of city residents by outside hooligans that
has plagued the city on Purim Night in recent years, say Bnei
Brak officials.
The meeting was arranged as part of inquiries regarding
incidents in previous years by youths who came to downtown
Bnei Brak from the surrounding areas and even more distant
places to throw firecrackers, harass and shove passersby and
roam the streets boisterously all night. The city positioned
paid guards and the police reinforced patrols, but these
measures proved inadequate to contend with the large number
of youths who came to disturb the peace.
Based on a directive by Mayor Rabbi Yissochor Frankentahl,
several leading city officials were summoned to a meeting,
including City Secretary and Spokesman Avrohom Tanenbaum,
Mayor's Assistant Attorney Yair Chassiel, Emergency Services
Department Director Mr. Chaim Nogelblatt, Inspection
Department Director Mr. David Azoulai and City Parking
Authority Administrative Director Mr. Ido Stockhammer. Police
officials in attendance included Dan Region Headquarters
Commander Chief Superintendent Ofer Shuster, Regional
Licensing Commander Superintendent Yaron Golan and District
Operations Commander Chief Inspector Eli Cohen. HaRav Shlomo
Levenstein of Mishmeres Hachinuch Vehakodesh was also on
hand.
Measures formulated during the meeting included installing
hidden cameras on streets where unruly youths have
congregated in previous years, boosting police presence and
hiring special reinforcements. City rabbonim will call on
city residents to avoid the streets on Purim Night to deprive
the youths of potential victims.
The meeting also addressed legal steps and informational
drives to prevent the sale of firecrackers and explosive
materials to children in stores and by street vendors, who
have been known to promote the sale of explosive materials in
school yards.
Avrohom Tanenbaum said that based on injuries among children
around the country in past years and even in recent weeks, it
has been decided to reinforce the number of police detective
patrols and city inspections in order to seek out and
confiscate these goods and to file reports against
vendors.
HaRav Shmuel Halevy Wosner, HaRav Nissim Karelitz and the
city's other rabbonim have exhorted parents to prevent their
children from using firecrackers, the use of which borders on
pikuach nefesh, saying it is also a mitzvah to report
firecracker sellers to the police. The city also called on
residents to report the sale or distribution of dangerous
items in stores or in the streets to the city hotline or the
police hotline.
