Hundreds of thousands of Jews are already in Bnei Brak for the funeral procession of haredi Lithuanian rabbi and Torah leader Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky ztz"l, who passed away on Friday afternoon. According to police estimates, over three quarters of a million people have already arrived in the city.
The funeral procession has begun at the rabbi's home on Rashbam Street in Bnei Brak and will proceed to the Zichron Meir cemetery in the city.
In order to prevent overcrowding and danger, the Bnei Brak municipality has installed dozens of huge screens and speaker systems along the procession route. The municipality urges parents to warn their children "to stay out of congested areas..."
The city's municipality urged locals to "desist from climbing bus stations and building roofs [for a better view of the procession." "This presents a real danger to life," read the statement. "The entire area is hermetically secured by the Israel Police without any access points, making attempts to enter the area unnecessary and dangerous," it continued.
The Ministry of Communications asked the public to refrain from making non-urgent use of their cellphones to free up bandwidth for emergencies. In case of emergency, people are advised to call the 100 hotline even if there appears to be no reception. Due to the expected congestion, difficulties are expected in issuing and receiving calls during the procession.
During his life, Rav Kanievsky was very involved with the tzedaka organization Vaad HaRabbanim. Funds are being collected for tzedaka l'ilui nishmat HaRav Chaim Kanievsky HERE.
The last campaign to run during Rav Kanievsky's life was a "Kamaya" campaign, where the Rav revived an ancient tradition for the first time in 100 years.
