About 2,500 people gathered Monday night in Beachwood to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the Hamas-led raid on Israel.
The Jewish Federation of Cleveland event featured remembrances of the 1,200 Israelis killed on Oct. 7, 2023, and a call for the return of more than 250 people taken hostage. Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb, Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne and U.S. Rep Max Miller were among the elected officials and community leaders in attendance.
The Jewish Federation’s Daniel Zelman told attendees the October 2023 attack affects Israelis to this day.
“From that moment, time has stood still for the people of Israel as we mourn the loss of those murdered in the attack, those that were killed defending Israel since then," Zelman said. "We pray for the remaining hostages to come home in many ways. Oct. 7, 2023, has not ended for the people of Israel.”
A survivor of the Hamas raid on Israel gave a first-hand account of her survival during last night’s commemoration of the attack. Rotem Sadeh, a mother of two children from Sderot, Israel, recalled the moment Hamas fighters entered her family’s apartment building.
“Everything went silent. I remember looking at [my husband] and my kids, thinking, these are our last moments," she recalled. "We lived on the first floor, so we knew we were next in line and praying was all that we had. I was praying for it to be quick.”
But no one came to their door and the family escaped.
Event co-chair Mitchell Schneider told attendees to use their memories as motivation for change.
“Hold on to the memory of those we've lost, but also hold on to the hope that we can and must make a difference. Feel the sadness. Feel the pain, but let that feeling push us to do more, to stand together, united as we know we can be," he said.
More than 1,200 Israelis died in the attack, which the Jewish Federation said is the largest loss of Jewish life in a single day since the Holocaust.
Meanwhile, local Muslim and Arab community members can attend a program this Saturday focused on coping with the stress of the Israel-Hamas war that has also claimed thousands of Palestinian lives. The program, happening at Cuyahoga County Public Library’s Brook Park branch, will be led by mental health professionals and advocates.
The October 2023 attack marked the deadliest day in modern Israel's history, according to NPR, and triggered a devastating attack on Palestinians. By the end of the month, Israeli forces launched a full-scale ground invasion of Gaza.
NPR reported that since the start of Israel's military response, the country's attacks have killed at least 41,000 Palestinians in Gaza, including 16,500 children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Another 95,000 people have been injured, according to NPR.
The war has splintered public opinion largely along party lines in the U.S. More than half of Democrats have said that Israel bears "a lot" of responsibility for the continuation of the war, while four in 10 Republicans have said so, NPR reported according to a recent Pearson Institute/AP-NORC poll.
