[PHOTOS IN EXTENDED ARTICLE]
While the numbers are somewhat different depending on which news source one checks, all are in agreement that the levaya of Maran HaGaon HaRav Ovadia Yosef ZT”L was the largest in the history of the State of Israel. Am Yisrael followed the directive of Gedolei Hador Shlita, who instructed talmidim and avreichim to close their Gemaras and participate in the levaya to show kovod Hatorah.
Jerusalem Police spokesman Shmulik Ben-Ruby reports the official police estimate is 850,000.
Chareidi Newspapers
HaPeles – quotes police, over 800,000
HaMevaser – close to 1 million
Hamodia – close to 1 million
Yated – close to 1 million
Yom L’Yom – over 700,000
Chareidi Radio
Kol Chai Radio – 850,000
Kol Berama – 1 million
Chareidi Internet
Kikar Shabbat- 1 million
Ladaat – 800,000
JDN – close to 1 million
Dati Leumi Internet
Srugim – over 800,000
Kipa – 850,000
HaKol Yehudi – over 700,000
Secular News
Walla News – 850,000
Ynet – 850,000
Maariv – 800,000
Yisrael Hayom – 850,000
Post Yisrael – 800,000
Haaretz – 800,000
Jerusalem Post – at least 800,000
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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8 Responses
These people came for only one reason to honor a walking sefer torah. He was well deserving of this honor. If you look at the torah leader there are huge numbers for their levayas because the only TRUE HONOR IS THE HONOR OF TORAH. The numbers don’t come close for Rabin, Golda Meir or Ben gurion. Let the seculars learn what is the real true in the world
Surprised that Secular News and DL did not say a small group of 200,000. What a miracle they said 700/850,000.
It was probably more than a million PLUS the hundreds of thousands who were stranded at the entrance of Yerushalayim and on highways.
The most amazing thing is that Rav Ovadia Yosef zt”l did not come from a family of Rabbanim. His father wanted him to work and assist financially. It was all thanks to his Rosh Yeshiva who realized what a bachur he was that he (the R”Y) was willing to make up for what Rav Ovadia earned and give it to the father as long as he’d let him continue learning meriting the biggest levaye in history!
It seems there is a broad consensus of just under a million. To get the same numbers in the United States, you would need perhaps 40 million people. That probably makes this the largest gathering of Jews since Sinai, or at least since the destruction of the Beis ha-Mikdash.
I would expect a yeshiva man to question the source of these numbers. People who are not experts in crowds can be way off and others can manipulate the numbers to suit their goals like impressing the seculars on the large turn out
so tell us, YWN, where is the source of the numbers and not just collect meaningless numbers from newspapers…
#4 akuperma: “Rebbi”, composer of Mishnayos, had a larger levaya. See the gemara, in Y-mi Mes’ Kelayijm.
#4 akuperma, even without ratio calculation, was there ever a million people at a funeral in the U.S. or anywhere else in the world for that matter?
Why the argument and machlokes?
Around 700,000 or 800,000 or ONE MILLION….the largest levaya ever. And hundreds of thousands of girls and women who were inside or on side street weren’t even in the cheshbon.
Determining exact numbers is impossible so who is complaining and about what?