LOD City Warns Horse Owners Against Reckless Riding on Yom Kippur

The city of Lod is preparing for Yom Kippur by implementing measures to maintain the sanctity of the day, public order, and the safety of residents who will be walking throughout the city to synagogues. Annually, the municipality deploys buses, trucks, vehicles, and roadblocks on main roads and entrances to prevent vehicle access to blocked areas and reduce dangerous driving while thousands of pedestrians are on the roads.

This year, Lod is expanding its efforts to address the issue of reckless horse riding during Yom Kippur. In recent years, the municipality has received reports of riders galloping through streets while families, children, and worshippers are in public spaces. The city emphasizes that this poses a significant danger to pedestrians and the riders themselves, in addition to offending public sensibilities.

As part of preventative measures, city security and enforcement officials met with families known to own horses before Rosh Hashanah. They were informed that increased enforcement would occur on Yom Kippur, and that dangerous riding, disturbances, or endangering the public could result in fines and further enforcement actions, including the potential seizure of animals in appropriate cases according to the law.

The municipality stated its primary goal is to prevent incidents before they happen, hence the decision for early outreach and warnings. The city's security and enforcement system will operate with reinforced forces during the fast, monitoring sensitive areas and addressing any incidents that could endanger the public.

Lod Municipality stated, "Yom Kippur is a day when the streets fill with thousands of pedestrians, families, and children. We will not allow anyone to endanger them. We call on everyone to respect the sanctity of the day, show responsibility, and refrain from any behavior that could harm the safety and security of the residents."