Skip to main content
Jan 2, 2020

In photos: Tight security as 90,000 Jewish people mark Siyum HaShas in N.J.

Rebecca Falconer
Men dance as they gather with others in MetLife Stadium on January 1, 2020, in East Rutherford, New Jersey

The New Year's Day gathering at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., to mark Siyum HaShas. Photo: Kena Betancur/AFP via Getty Images

Nearly 90,000 Jewish people congregated at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey amid tight security Wednesday for Siyum HaShas, a celebration of the completion of the reading of the entire Talmud, per CBS.

Why it matters: It comes after a spate of anti-Semitic attacks in New Jersey and nearby New York, including a shooting at a New Jersey kosher supermarket and a mass stabbing at a rabbi's home last month. Anti-Defamation League vice president Oren Segal has said New York Jewish communities are facing an "epidemic" of hate crimes.

People gather in MetLife Stadium on January 1, 2020, in East Rutherford, New Jersey
Siyum HaShas is a celebration of the completion of the reading of the 2,711-page Babylonian Talmud, a process that takes 7.5 years. Photo: Kena Betancur /AFP via Getty Images
New Jersey State Police officers stand guard as people congregate at the MetLife Stadium
Some 300 uniformed police officers attended the N.J. event, ABC News reports. Photo: Kena Betancur/AFP via Getty Images
People congregate at the MetLife Stadium
About 350,000 people celebrate Siyum HaSha globally, per the New York Times. Photo: Kena Betancur/AFP via Getty Images
Men dance as they gather with others in MetLife Stadium on January 1, 2020, in East Rutherford
Organizers said 88,000 people attended the N.J. event state, and police said there were no reports of security issues there as of late Wednesday afternoon, AP reports. Photo: Kena Betancu/AFP via Getty Images
Go deeper