Many hundreds of thousands of Jews spent part or all of the day in shuls yesterday – and for many of them, the dramatic fast-ending shofar blast was the signal for the fulfillment of additional mitzvos: Maariv, Kiddush Levana, Havdalah, and a start to building sukkahs, with Sukkos set to begin four nights from now.
Here in Israel, Ben Gurion International Airport reopened right after the taanis, with the first international flight at 8:30 p.m.
Over the taanis, Magen David Adom reported treating 2,053 people. Two men drowned just before Yom Kippur began, and another man drowned in the Dead Sea on Yom Kippur afternoon. 133 women in labor were taken by ambulance to hospitals, and 242 children were hurt when they fell off their bicycles.
Bicycle-riding has become a popular “pastime” for secular Israelis on Yom Kippur, when the roads are essentially empty of cars. May it be that next year, iy”H, if the geulah does not come, those Jews will join with the rest of us in shul, beseeching Hakadosh Boruch Hu for forgiveness and a happy, healthy, fruitful and blessed new year.
{Yair Alpert-Matzav.com Newscenter}
