Jerusalem - There was standing room only in Jerusalem on Monday night as the heir to one of the most important Jewish ultra-orthodox families was married.
Shalom Rokeach, 18, and his 19-year-old bride Hannah Batya Penet, wed in front of 25 000 guests, some of whom needed binoculars to see the ceremony.
Rokeach is the grandson of the leader of the Hasidic Belz Rebbe dynasty - an aristocratic family that has its roots in 14th-century Poland. He is also the only male heir, and he is one day expected to head one of the largest dynasties in Judaism.
The huge ceremony lasted until dawn, with police forced to close roads in the area. The wedding was also an opportunity for members of the Belz Rebbe from across the globe to meet and socialise, with many travelling from America and Europe.
The bride, wearing a diamond encrusted traditional white dress, was escorted to meet her groom by female relatives, and remained veiled throughout the ceremony, As in many areas of Orthodox Jewish society, the male and female guests were separated.
Traditional Jewish weddings consist of two separate parts, the betrothal ceremony, known as kiddushin, and the wedding itself, known as nisuin. In between the two parts, the groom and his bride spend an hour in each other's company.
The males wear formal clothing, including the Shtreimel hat and black overcoats called bekishes, which are worn on a daily basis by the fiercely traditional Belz Rebbe. Women often cover their heads and wear high necklines and long skirts to conform to tznius - a code of ultra-orthodox modesty.
The community derives its name from the town of Belz in Poland. It was home to 3,600 Jewish people before the outbreak of the Second World War. The Belz Rebbe community is now thought to consist of more than 7,000 families. - The Independent
