Earlier this week, a suicide bomber blew himself up outside the Netanya shopping mall, which is about 2 kilometers from my apartment. I clearly heard the explosion and saw the smoke. 5 Israelis lost their lives. Baruch HaShem nobody I knew was involved.

It got me thinking about Birchat Hagomel. Although I don't believe I need to say it since I was not directly involved, what about people who were planning to go to the mall but for one reason or another did not go? Are they chiyuv to say it, or is it only people who were directly involved?

If you were never near the scene of the bombing, then you can't say that your life was in danger. To recite HaGomel one's life must have been in actual danger and then saved from it.

Hashem Yerachem Osanu - May Hashem save and protect us from our enemies.

Does a woman have to say HaGomel before a minyan or not?

I'll display my ignorance here, but isn't there a form of this that anyone can say when there is no minyan? I am thinking that there is.

If fly across the Atlantic, some say I should say HaGomel, others say it's not necessary because I was not in fatal danger. After a woman has given birth, some say she should say HaGomel before a minyan others say it's not necessary to have a minyan. I just wanted to get some sense of the halacha beyond the minhag.

Quote "what about people who were planning to go to the mall but for one reason or another did not go? Are they chiyuv to say it, or is it only people who were directly involved?"

It would seem from MB 218:32 (Which in 219:31 compares in to Birchas Hagomel), even if someone was there, but was missed being hit by inches, it’s not so simple that he says (so he should say it without Hashem’s name.) He has to be hit, and saved from it, to definitely make a Bracha.

One could say the same about those who were about to go into the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, but were late and never made it there....

quote:

Originally posted by Sam-:
One could say the same about those who were about to go into the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, but were late and never made it there....

Or about someone whao had planned to go to New York but never got his passport.

quote:

Originally posted by Sam-:
One could say the same about those who were about to go into the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, but were late and never made it there....

Well, since Rav Alter has revived this topic I might as well mention my daughter and son-in-law who were visiting the US from Israel and planned to go to the WTC on 9/11 but woke up too late to do so.