Israel's defense minister proposed on Thursday that the country's newly installed government launch an official inquiry into the stampede at a Jewish religious festival that killed 45 people in April.

Tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews thronged to the tomb of 2nd-century sage Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai in the Galilee on April 30 for the annual Lag B'Omer celebration that includes all-night prayer, mystical songs and dance.

During the ceremony part of the crowd surged into a narrow tunnel and the 45 celebrants, including children, were asphyxiated or trampled, shocking the nation and families of victims who had come from overseas. More than 150 people were injured in the crush.

Benjamin Netanyahu, who was prime minister at the time, had promised a thorough investigation, but hostilities between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas broke out less than two weeks later.

"It is a moral debt to the families, and no less, an important step meant to prevent such tragic events in the future," said Defense Minister Benny Gantz.