Queens Borough President Donovan Richards organized the vigil in Kew Gardens Hills.
Photo by Iryna Shkurhan
More than 100 people gathered outside of the Queens Public Library in Kew Gardens Hills to show their support and stand in solidarity with Israel while mourning the lives lost as a result of Hamas’ surprise attack this past weekend.
Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, who gathered numerous politicians and religious leaders for the vigil, said that Queens is home to one of the largest Jewish communities in the country, a fact that was made clear in Kew Gardens Hills, where police closed down Vleigh Place to make room for the solemn crowd clad with signs in the color of the Israeli flag.
Early on Saturday morning, Oct. 7, the Hamas militant group which controls Palestinian territory launched an unprecedented incursion on Israel. Since then, the death toll on both sides has steadily climbed. At the time of the vigil, it is estimated that the violence killed 900 people in Israel and injured 2,500. And as Israel began to strike back in a full declaration of war, more than 600 people are dead in Gaza, including over 100 children, according to published reports.
Following a moment of silence, community leaders across the borough took turns expressing their solidarity with those in Israel and the local Jewish community. They collectively denounced the violence that unfolded in the region over the past two days and offered what words they could to ease the suffering. And while there was little anyone could do about violence in the Middle East, their passionate and emotional response conveyed their stance.
“We’ve been in front of this library in this neighborhood, standing up for Israel so many times,” said Queens District Attorney Melina Katz, who is Jewish. “There’s gonna come a day when we don’t have to gather here, that the world knows that Israel has a right to defend itself. And then Israel knows that it has a right to live…
Read the full article here
