HEALDSBURG, Calif. – There were Jewish gatherings across the country to observe the second anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel coinciding with an important Jewish holiday. It was a small but very public gathering in Healdsburg with participants and onlookers hoping for the best.
At the Healdsburg Plaza Gazebo on Tuesday night, we saw prayers of mourning, praise, and remembrance for those in Israel who died in the October 7th attack, exactly two years ago. Though it was already tomorrow in the Holy Land, it was the night of remembrance here and many places across the nation.
“It’s an incredible blessing to be safe, able to do this in community, in public. It’s an incredible blessing, and we do not take that for granted,” said participant Leah Gerber.
It comes at a time when there is real potential for a ceasefire and, perhaps, a lasting peace. “We’ve seen, in the course of human history, certainly in the course of Jewish history, enormous tragedies, and we’ve seen a better world come afterwards and I think right now, we have a lot of hope for that,” said community organizer
Gabriel Froymovich.
Yet, each day, the massive humanitarian crisis and the war drags on. “There’s been terrible suffering on both sides of this war and even in my remarks here tonight, I’m going to be acknowledging the civilian casualties on the Gaza side, that were themselves victims of Hamas in putting them, essentially as human shields,” Michael Harris of Stand With Us Northern California.
In the attack, 1,195 Israelis, visitors, and security forces died; 3,400 were wounded; 251 civilians and soldiers were captured. At the same time, 1,609 Hamas fighters died; 149 were captured.
In the ensuing war, the Palestinian Health Ministry and World Health Organization say more than 67,000 Palestinians perished; 170,000 were wounded, not including thousands more believed buried under rubble.
It also comes at the same time when Jewish people celebrate harvest time and the promise of more harvests to come. “It’s a fragile moment, but there’s a lot of hope. And, I think that, in times like these, we look at a tragedy and the potential of new life coming together. We’re very, very hopeful this week,” said Irene Hodes of the Jewish Community Relations Council.
A prayer for peace. “At the same time, we’ll be saying blessings basically to celebrate life,” said Mr. Froymovich.
Hamas negotiators say they want guarantees that Israel end the war on Gaza and withdraw from Palestinian territory in line with the U.S. plan. In return, Hamas says it will release hostages in stages aligned to the withdrawal.
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