The impassioned Jewish group in Boston got here out within the lots of Monday afternoon to help Israel after the escalating brutality within the area over the weekend.
“We have family who are hiding in shelters,” mentioned Rabbi Marcia Plumb, standing in a Israeli flag among the many sea of blue and white throughout the sunny Boston Common. “We have friends and family who are now fighting terrorists. We know people who’ve been kidnapped. So it’s personal. It is personal.”
The rally, “Gathering in Solidarity With Israel Under Fire,” led by varied Jewish organizations within the area gathered on the Parkman Bandstand within the Boston Common at midday Monday.
The gathering, that includes speeches from Jewish group and elected leaders, aimed to display “solidarity with Israel and against terrorism, after the Hamas terrorist massacre in Israel Saturday, in which at least 600 Israelis were murdered and more than 2,000 wounded.”
“On Saturday morning, I woke up to a terrifying new reality,” recounted Israel-native Sapir Reznik, the Jewish Agency Israel fellow at Harvard Hillel. “Family members, friends, all of Israel under attack.”
Reznik emphasised the variety of individuals already killed, wounded and kidnapped — in line with AP Monday, over 1,100 killed in Israel and Gaza, hundreds wounded and 150 civilians kidnapped to Gaza.
Her good friend’s father was taken, she mentioned, and a second good friend’s little brother is lacking.
“I pray for the safe return of all my friends and everyone called to the reserves, members of my family helping to defend my country and our people,” mentioned Reznik, holding again tears. “Like every Jewish community, we are grieving today for those lost.”
Several individuals remembered how Israeli’s assist help victims after the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings, emphasizing the robust bond between the communities.
“It was powerful to remember that Israel was here during the bombing,” mentioned Plumb. “That Israel gave training, that they showed up, and it’s powerful to realize Massachusetts is showing up as well for Israel.”
Speakers requested anybody within the crowd to lift their arms if that they had family members embroiled within the struggle, lifting a sea of arms throughout the gang.
“We don’t measure our connection to Israel by the geographic distance, 5,500 miles; Boston has always measured our connection with Israel deep in our hearts,” mentioned Mayor Michelle Wu. … “The scale of what has happened over the last several days echoes with the horror and heartbreak of history. But in Boston, it is personal these are our family members. We mark each and every one of these innocent civilians with our own heartbreak.”
Source: www.bostonherald.com”